Department for Transport

Driving Tests: Languages

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the decision implemented in 2014 by the Driving Standards Agency to stop language support being permitted in practical driving tests on access to driving in the UK for immigrants with other first languages.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) does not hold data as to whether a candidate who takes a practical driving test is an immigrant with other first languages. As such, the DVSA has not made an assessment on the effect of the decision, implemented in 2014, to stop language support being permitted during practical driving tests on access to driving in the UK for immigrants.

Driving Tests: Languages

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the effect of Driving Standards Agency changes to language support in driving tests on the ability of refugees to drive in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) does not hold data as to whether a candidate who takes a practical driving test is a refugee. As such, the DVSA has not made an assessment on the effect of changes to language support during practical driving tests on the ability of refugees to drive in the UK.

Department for Transport: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Jesse Norman: The table below shows data the Department (DfT Central Department, the Driver Vehicle & Licensing Agency, the Driver & Vehicle Services Agency, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency and the Vehicle Certification Agency) holds on the number of staff that have indicated that they are Sikh, and whether this information is recorded as an ethnic or religious group as at 31 December 2018.Department TotalRecorded as Ethnic or Religious group51Religion The figures represent staff on our payroll and does not include contractors and other non-pay employees.

Railways: Oxfordshire

Robert Courts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the disused Yarnton-Witney-Fairford branch line remains in the ownership of Network Rail.

Andrew Jones: Network Rail no longer owns the disused Yarnton-Witney-Fairford branch line. The Highways England Historical Railways Estate is now responsible for the historical railways estate.

Department for Transport: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Jesse Norman: The Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) is a continually evolving portfolio of the government’s most complex and high risk projects. Direct comparisons of the GMPP across years should therefore be treated with caution. Projects join and leave the GMPP throughout the year and it is therefore likely that a simple comparison across two time points will refer to different sets of projects. At the end of June 2016 (i.e. the end of the Quarter 1 reporting period for 2016-17), 320 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) public sector employees were reported as working on the Department for Transport’s GMPP projects. GMPP data for December 2018 (Q3 2018/19) has not yet been cleared and finalised. At the end of September 2018 (i.e. the latest submitted data, at end of the Quarter 2 reporting period for 2018-19), 361 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) public sector employees were reported as working on the Department for Transport’s GMPP projects. Given the different nature of the projects and programmes within the Department for Transport, some of the FTE figures include public sector employees in the relevant arms-length-body.

Taxis: Licensing

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to respond to the independent report on Taxi and private hire vehicle licensing: recommendations for a safer and more robust system, published on 24 September 2018.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: I refer the hon Member to the answer I gave on 14 January 2019, to Question UIN 206796 which is available at: [MS1] https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2019-01-09/206796/

Aviation: Egypt

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the UK aviation and travel industry of the failure to restart flights to Sharm-el Sheikh.

Jesse Norman: The Department does not hold information on the costs to the tourism and airline industries of any restrictions on flights to Sharm-el-Sheikh.

Aviation: Scotland

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to encourage the creation of international connections to and from Scotland from other UK airports.

Jesse Norman: Government is supportive of all airports including those in Scotland, in creating new international connections. The Government believes that air passengers are best served by a commercial airline market which is able to operate in a competitive environment. It is solely a matter for airlines to determine which airports they operate based on their own assessment of costs and passenger demand.

M20: Noise

Helen Whately: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of noise levels on the M20 between Junctions 8-9.

Jesse Norman: The noise levels on this section of the M20 have been assessed as part of DEFRA’s Noise Action Plan. This identified 10 areas between M20 Junction 8-9 which required investigation because of the level of noise.Action has been taken to mitigate noise at five out of the 10 areas with the installation of noise insulation. Highways England are working to address the remaining five areas, including trials to test options to reduce the noise generated by concrete road surfaces.

M20: Accidents

Helen Whately: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of accidents on the M20 between Junctions 8 and 9 in each of the last 10 years.

Jesse Norman: Below are the accident figures for the number of reported accidents on the M20 Junctions 8-9 in each of the last 10 yearsNumber of reported road accidents on the M20 (Juncs: 8-9)1, 2007 to 2017YearNumber of accidents20078200812200915201062011620121020138201452015620161120177Source: DfT Stats191. Includes all the slip roads on and off at each of the junctions.

Department for Transport: Assets

Paul Girvan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the the value of written-off assets held by his Department in each of the last two financial years.

Jesse Norman: The Department did not make any write-offs of permanent fixed assets in financial years 2016-17 and 2017-18.The Department records an annual write-down of infrastructure assets in the financial statements. These write-downs represent notional accounting adjustments arising from the different valuation bases which are applied at different stages over an asset’s life in accordance with HMT’s financial reporting rules, and do not represent write-offs of actual permanent assets.Write-offs may also arise in respect of other asset categories such as debt, investment or inventory balances. These write-offs are included within Losses as reported by the Department. Where such write-offs individually exceed £300,000, they are separately disclosed as Losses in the Parliamentary Accountability Report within the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts.

M26: Large Goods Vehicles

Sir Michael Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the number of HGVs that can be accommodated on a temporary basis on the M26.

Jesse Norman: The Department is working with Highways England and other key stakeholders to finalise the Operation Brock plans. Operation Brock consists of three phases, involving a contraflow queuing system on the M20, and holding areas at Manston Airport and finally, and only if necessary, on the M26. The initial assessment made by Highways England is that the M26 could potentially accommodate up to 2300 HGVs if all running lanes on both carriageways were utilised, subject to the necessary health and safety risk assessments.

Taxis: Licensing

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to the September 2018 report of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV Licensing; and whether he plans to bring forward primary legislation to implement that report’s recommendations.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Ministers are considering the recommendations made by the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing. A Government response will be issued in due course. Legislation to reform the regulation of taxis and private hire vehicles will be brought forward if required.

Taxis: Licensing

Julia Lopez: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to the September 2018 report of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and PHV Licensing; and whether he plans to bring forward primary legislation to implement that report’s recommendations.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: Ministers are considering the recommendations made by the Chair of the Task and Finish Group on Taxi and Private Hire Vehicle Licensing, a Government response will be issued in due course. Legislation to reform the regulation of taxis and private hire vehicles will be brought forward if required.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has in place to ensure that Highways England takes steps to reduce levels of nitrogen dioxide on the strategic road network which exceed statutory limits.

Jesse Norman: The Government’s plans are set out in the 2017 Air Quality Strategy and Highways England are working to deliver compliance with air quality limits in the shortest possible time. Specifically, Highways England are taking a number of steps to improve air quality on the roads they manage and are working with local authorities to reduce NO2 on their roads. This activity is supported by the £100m Air Quality Designated Fund.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps Highways England is taking to reduce levels of nitrogen dioxide on the strategic road network which exceed statutory limits.

Jesse Norman: Highways England are supporting the uptake of electric vehicles by working to ensure that 95 per cent of the strategic road network will have a chargepoint every 20 miles.Highways England have also been exploring and testing a range of measures and innovative products as part of their programme of air quality research. They have evidence that tall barriers can reduce concentrations of NO2 for the residents closest nearby, and they are progressing with work to see how these could be installed on the network. This work is underpinned by their £100m Air Quality Designated Fund.

Ports: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of (a) the importance of Welsh ports to the UK economy and (b) the role of Welsh ports in the Maritime 2050 strategy.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: No specific assessment of the importance of ports in Wales to the UK economy has been made by the Government. However, the UK’s ports, including those in Wales, play a vital role in our economy, acting as key facilitators for trade and economic activity. Around 95% of British imports and exports in goods are moved by sea. A 2015 study by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr) commissioned by Maritime UK, estimated that the Welsh maritime sector directly supported just under £940 million in domestic revenue, £330 million in GVA and 5,960 jobs in Wales. These figures illustrate the important contribution of Wales to the UK maritime sector.The Maritime 2050 strategy was developed through a wide ranging, extensive programme of evidence gathering and engagement across the UK. Although UK ports policy is a devolved matter in Wales apart from the Port of Milford Haven, in recognition of the extensive maritime interests in Wales, the Welsh Government and other maritime stakeholders were fully engaged in the development of Maritime 2050.

Ports: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason references to the South Wales ports of (a) Newport, (b) Cardiff, (c) Barry, (d) Port Talbot and (e) Swansea were not included in his Department’s strategy document entitled Maritime 2050: Navigating the Future.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Maritime 2050 strategy was developed through a wide ranging, extensive programme of evidence gathering and engagement across the UK. Although UK ports policy is a devolved matter in Wales apart from the Port of Milford Haven, in recognition of the extensive maritime interests in Wales, the Welsh Government and other maritime stakeholders were fully engaged in the development of Maritime 2050. As a UK-wide strategy, a selection of examples of ports from across the UK were referenced in the report to illustrate how widespread and beneficial UK ports are to local growth.

Ports: Wales

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's document entitled Maritime 2050: navigating the future, published in January 2019, for what reason there are no references to the South Wales ports of Newport, Cardiff, Barry, Port Talbot and Swansea in that document.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Maritime 2050 strategy was developed through a wide ranging, extensive programme of evidence gathering and engagement across the UK. Although UK ports policy is a devolved matter in Wales apart from the Port of Milford Haven, in recognition of the extensive maritime interests in Wales, the Welsh Government and other maritime stakeholders were fully engaged in the development of Maritime 2050. As a UK-wide strategy, a selection of examples of ports from across the UK were referenced in the report to illustrate how widespread and beneficial UK ports are to local growth.

Road Traffic Control: West Sussex

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2019 to Question 206710 on Road Traffic Control: West Sussex, for what reason Highways England did not undertake a (a) Walking, Cycling and Horse-riding assessment during the options and concept stages of the scheme's development and (b) Review report at the conclusion of the preliminary design stage, in accordance with the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2019 to Question 20610 on Road Traffic Control: West Sussex, what criteria Highways England used to support the scheme in the absence of a Walking, Cycling and Horse-riding assessment at each stage of the process.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2019 to Question 20610 on Road Traffic Control: West Sussex, what steps he is taking to ensure that Highways England will revise the scheme in the event that the scheme (a) worsens pedestrian, cycle and equestrian access and in the vicinity of the South Downs National Park and (b) is not compliant with Highways England's design standards for cycle provision.

Jesse Norman: A Walking, Cycling and Horse Riding Assessment is carried out by the relevant design team, not Highways England. In this case, we understand that the options and concept stages of the scheme began in the autumn of 2016 before the publication of the Walking, Cycling and Horse Riding Assessment and were subject to the applicable standard on Non-Motorised User Audits. The Transport Assessment accompanying the planning application provided information satisfying the criteria for a non-motorised user context report.A Review Report is required at the end of the preliminary design stage and before commencement of detailed design followed by a further Review Report at the end of the detailed design phase and before construction commences. The design team is now at the end of the preliminary design stage, but detailed design has not yet begun. A Review Report is now due and will be completed before the commencement of detailed design.The preliminary design improved pedestrian, cycle and equestrian access in the vicinity of the South Downs National Park, and further opportunities for improvement may be identified through a forthcoming Walking, Cycling and Horse Riding Review. The preliminary design was also compliant with Highways England’s design standards for cycle provision. Any non-compliance identified during detailed design will be removed or be subject to the process of assessment whether there may be grounds for a specific variation.

Department for Education

Children in Care: Mental Health

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the status is of the 10 pilot programmes aimed at improving mental health assessments for children entering care.

Nadhim Zahawi: Our delivery partner, the Anna Freud Centre, received over 50 applications from local areas wanting to take part in the programme. The selection process has now concluded, and the successful sites are working with the Anna Freud Centre on their individual plans to implement the pilot. We will make a public announcement on the sites shortly.

Frontline

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the long-term effect of Frontline on the number of people engaging in social work research.

Nadhim Zahawi: Frontline participants completing the master’s degree programme are required to undertake social work research. We are not aware of any long-term impact of Frontline on the wider social work sector’s engagement with research. Government is establishing a What Works Centre for children’s social care, which will address the gap that often exists between research and practice. It aims to translate research findings into practical support for social workers, practice leaders and commissioners to improve outcomes for children, young people and their families. Additionally, our teaching partnership programme has supported the development of research links between universities and social work practitioners.

Apprentices: EU Nationals

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether EU nationals undertaking an apprenticeship in the UK will be able to complete their apprenticeship in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a withdrawal agreement.

Anne Milton: We have agreed to protect the rights of EU citizens in the UK in both a deal and no deal scenario. Should the UK leave the EU without a deal, EU nationals living in the UK before 29 March 2019 will be able to remain in the UK and work, study, and access benefits and services, including education, training and appretniceships, on broadly the same terms as now. They will need to apply to stay in the UK, through the EU Settlement Scheme, if they are planning to continue living in the UK after 2020. They would need to make an application by 29 March 2020.

Apprentices: Finance

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what account his Department takes of inflation when allocating funding for apprenticeships.

Anne Milton: Spending on the apprenticeship programme is demand led, and employers can choose which apprenticeships they offer, how many and when. Funding available for levy-paying employers depends on their levy contributions and how many of their employees live in England. For employers who do not pay the levy, we allocate funding to apprenticeship training providers directly based on our assessment of demand in the system and overall affordability of the programme. The funding allocated to providers is for non-levy starts is not directly inflation-linked. Separately, the Institute for Apprenticeships is responsible for advising on the funding bands for individual apprenticeships, which are kept under review to make sure they continue to support high-quality delivery and represent value for money.

Social Workers: Training

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2019 to Question 210039 on Social Workers: Training, how many bidders submitted a tender application.

Nadhim Zahawi: As set out in my response to question 210039, three bidders expressed an interest in submitting a tender; however, one bidder withdrew their interest prior to submitting an initial bid. Therefore, two parties submitted a tender application.

Teachers: Pay

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many teachers have moved down the pay scale in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: The information requested is not held centrally.

Social Services: Children

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will link the funding of local authority children's services to levels of demand.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department is working alongside the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government and the sector as part of the review of relative needs and resources to develop a robust, up to date approach to funding distribution for children's services, which will determine new baseline funding allocations for local authorities in England in 2020-21.

Teachers: Pay

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimates his Department has made of the comparable costs of the (a) recommendations of the School Teachers’ Pay Review Body that all pay and allowance ranges for teachers and school leaders are uplifted by 3.5% from September 2018 and (b) his Department's pay package introduced following the that School Teachers’ Pay Review Body report.

Nick Gibb: In July 2018, the Department accepted in full the School Teachers’ Pay Review Body (STRB) recommendation for a 3.5% uplift to the minima and maxima of the main pay range. As a result, classroom teachers will see starting salaries increasing by between £803 and £1,004. The Department also announced a substantial uplift to pay ranges for leaders and higher-paid teachers: 2% on the upper pay range and 1.5% on the leadership pay range.This was supported by a new Teachers’ Pay Grant of £508 million over two years, covering the difference between these awards and the 1% award that schools would have anticipated under the previous public sector pay cap. This was funded using existing Department for Education resources, recognising that the pay award would have a significant impact on school budgets.Providing an equivalent Teachers’ Pay Grant to cover the difference between a 3.5% award for all pay ranges and the previous public sector pay cap would have cost over £900m across two years.In line with the overall government approach to pay review body recommendations across the public sector, the Department needs to balance the importance of rewarding teachers with ensuring awards are affordable and fair to the taxpayer.

Social Services: Children

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that there is a sustainable future for children’s services in West Lancashire.

Nadhim Zahawi: Children's social care services in Lancashire were judged as ‘Requires Improvement' by Ofsted in August 2018. This followed a period of intervention by the department after an earlier ‘Inadequate’ judgement in 2015. As a result, services in Lancashire are now in a period of support and supervision and will receive regular support and challenge from the department to ensure that recent improvements are sustained.The government is committed to improving outcomes for disadvantaged children and young people. That is why our children’s social care reform programme is working to deliver a highly capable, highly skilled social work workforce as well as high performing services everywhere and a national system of excellent and innovative practice.The Autumn Budget announced a further £410 million in 2019-20 for local authorities to invest in adult and children’s social care services. We are also investing £84 million in targeted evidence-based interventions to unlock better work with vulnerable children and their families. This is in addition to the over £200 billion that was made available at the 2015 Spending Review until 2020 for councils to deliver local services, including children’s services.

Department for Education: Brexit

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Anne Milton: The government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 31 January, the department has laid 3 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published in the link below, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title: https://legislation.gov.uk.

Members: Correspondence

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when he plans to answer the letter from Councillor Jonathan Pryor, executive member for learning for Leeds City Council, dated 26 September 2018, on school funding in Leeds.

Nick Gibb: The letter to my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, dated 26 September 2018, was passed to my right hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for the School System as the Minister responsible for this policy area. A response was signed and sent via email to Councillor Pryor on 29 October 2018. This reply was also sent again on 29 January 2019.

Education Funding Agency: Buildings

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Answers of 15 September 2016 to Question 45976, of 29 March 2017 to Question 68740 and of 19 December 2017 to Question 120437, what plans his Department has to bring the former East Ham police station building back into use.

Nadhim Zahawi: The department is currently working with the City of London Academies Trust to consider the site’s suitability for the expansion of one of its schools, Newham Collegiate Sixth Form, from 600 to 800 students. The project is currently at the Feasibility Study stage, and is expected to complete this early this year. A decision will then be taken on the most appropriate way forward.

Teachers: Academies

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to his Department's Teacher Recruitment and Retention strategy, whether the commitment to fund five per cent off timetable in the second year of teaching will apply to teachers in academies.

Nick Gibb: Once reforms for induction are introduced nationally, all early career teachers in their second year of statutory induction will be entitled to funded five per cent off timetable, subject to regulatory changes. All relevant institutions, including those academies that choose to provide induction, will have to comply with these regulations.

Teachers: Training

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the document entitled, Early Career Framework published by his Department on 28 January 2018, whether the funding commitments to support will be included in the forthcoming Spending Review.

Nick Gibb: Teacher recruitment and retention is a high priority issue for the Government, and the Department is committed to taking further action. The Department will be funding the Early Career Framework (ECF) reforms in full. The Spending Review 2019 will set Departmental budgets and confirm the precise funding details for the ECF. By the time the ECF reforms are fully in place the Department anticipates investing at least an additional £130 million every year to support delivery. Funding for national roll-out will include funding and guaranteeing 5% off timetable in the second year of teaching for all early career teachers, with funding based on the number of early career teachers a school is supporting. It will also include the creation of high quality curricula and training materials paid for by the Department and available for free. The roll-out will further establish full ECF training programmes, with teachers’ access to programmes funded by the Department. It will also ensure funding the time for mentors to support early career teachers, and fully funded mentor training. The £130 million funding reflects what individual schools are expected to need on a yearly basis to support delivery of the ECF in full.

Teachers: Training

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the publication entitled, Early Career Framework published by his Department on 28 January 2019, whether he has plans to allocate funding in excess of £130 million if a request is made; and whether any additional funding will be provided by HM Treasury.

Nick Gibb: The £130 million funding package represents an ongoing investment in the development of early career teachers and their mentors. Once fully rolled out, all schools will be able to draw on fully funded and quality assured training and support. Funding for national roll-out will include funding and guaranteeing 5% off timetable in the second year of teaching for all early career teachers, with funding based on the number of early career teachers a school is supporting. It will also include the creation of high quality curricula and training materials paid for by the Department and available for free. The roll-out will further establish full Early Career Framework (ECF) training programmes, with teachers’ access to programmes funded by the Department, rather than schools. It will also ensure funding time for mentors to support early career teachers, and fully funded mentor training. The £130 million funding reflects what individual schools are expected to need on a yearly basis to support delivery of the ECF in full. The early roll-out phase will help the Department collect evidence on how to roll out the framework nationally in September 2021 and ensure it meets the needs of early career teachers and enables them to enjoy a successful start in the profession. The Spending Review 2019 will set wider Departmental budgets and confirm the precise funding details for the ECF.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Contracts

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which service providers are contracted to carry out third party cleaning contracts for his (a) Department and (b) executive agencies; if he will list all of the services delivered by third party contractors to his (i) Department and (ii) executive agencies; and how many people working for those third party contractors are paid less than the Living Wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation.

Richard Harrington: We value all of our staff and they all deserve a fair and competitive wage, whether they are directly employed or working through our contractors. The Department has agreed with its facilities management contractor that they will align the pay of their cleaning, catering, mailroom and security staff to the appropriate median rates for that occupation, as identified in the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. The median applies from 1 March 2019 and will be aligned annually. From 1 March 2019 cleaning services will be delivered to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and our key agencies[1] by ISS. ISS provide a total facilities management service covering all building support services aside from catering. We do not hold detailed pay data for contractor employees. Specific rates are a matter for each individual contractor, but assurances are provided to ensure full compliance with the requirements of the National Living Wage. In April 2019 Government will increase the National Living Wage to £8.21 per hour. This is an above inflation increase that will see a full-time minimum wage worker over £2,750 better off over the course of a year compared to when the policy was introduced. [1] Land Registry, Companies House, Intellectual Property Office, Insolvency Service, Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service and UKRI (Polaris House)

Coal: Russia

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much coal imports to the UK from Russia increased in (a) tonnage and (b) proportion terms from (i) 2016-2017 and (ii) 2017-2018; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: Coal is a globally traded commodity and the UK sources coal from a range of countries including Russia, US, Colombia and Australia. The UK’s overall consumption of coal has been falling - demand in 2017 was less than a quarter of that seen in 2000. Over that period the tonnage of coal imports from Russia has been on a downward trend falling from 18.1m tonnes in 2012 to 3.9m tonnes in 2017, representing a decrease of 78%. Total UK coal imports in 2016 were at their lowest in 34 years due to lower demand from electricity generators and so this year is unrepresentative when compared to 2017 in isolation. In 2016, 2.3 million tonnes (27%) of the UK’s total coal imports came from Russia and this increased to 3.9 million tonnes (46%) in 2017.Comparative data for the period 2017-2018 is not yet available.This information has been cited from The Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) available athttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/digest-of-uk-energy-statistics-dukes-2017-main-reporthttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/digest-of-uk-energy-statistics-dukes-2018-main-reportandhttps://www.gov.uk/government/collections/digest-of-uk-energy-statistics-dukes

Coal: Manufacturing Industries

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the UK government considers coal for (a) steel and (b) cement manufacture to be a strategically important mineral; and if he will make a statement.

Claire Perry: The Government recognises the importance of coal as a raw material for cement producers, and in primary steel production where coke and iron ore are the principle inputs to the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe and Port Talbot. Currently, there are well-functioning global markets for the types of coal required in the UK industrial base and these materials are not in short supply. As part of the Industrial Strategy we have secured a sector deal with the UK construction sector, and remain in close dialogue with the UK steel sector in pursuit of a similar outcome. Through these conversations neither sector has raised concerns regarding coal. In addition to the Department’s current efforts in encouraging all UK businesses to prepare resilient contingency plans to ensure continuation of supply for their key inputs (including materials) as we leave the EU, all commercial operators in these sectors will have been constantly monitoring their key dependencies and risks as responsible businesses.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Richard Harrington: The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has 24 people who have recorded themselves as Sikh. As the recording of such diversity information is voluntary this may not represent the full picture of people working in BEIS.This data is recorded as a “Religion or Belief”.These numbers represent those who have completed their ethnicity data on our management systems. There are a number of staff who have not yet completed it, therefore these numbers are not 100% of all staff at BEIS. This information does not include catering and cleaning staff as they are contracted and their data sits with their employer.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Richard Harrington: The GMPP is a continually evolving portfolio of the Government’s most complex and high risk projects. Direct comparisons of the GMPP across years should therefore be treated with caution. Projects join and leave the GMPP throughout the year and it is therefore likely that a simple comparison across two time points will refer to different sets of projects.At the end of June 2016 (i.e. the end of the Quarter 1 reporting period for 2016-17), 199 officials in BEIS were working on GMPP projects.GMPP data for December 2018 (Q3 2018/19) has not yet been cleared and finalised.This data refers to public sector employees, defined as those who are directly in the employment of the Civil or Crown Service, local government or Arms’ Length Body at the relevant snapshot date, including seconded members of staff who join the team as Civil, Crown or Public servants.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Brexit

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) procurement processes his Department has run for contracts for after the UK leaves the EU since 23 June 2016 and (b) bids his Department has received from suppliers for services for after the UK has left the EU.

Richard Harrington: BEIS keeps a central record of procurements over a value of £100,000. There are currently 20 procurement processes above this threshold that have been let since 23rd June 2016 where the contract is expected to be awarded after 30th March 2019. There are more procurement processes that have run since 23rd June 2016, which have been awarded (or will be awarded before 29th March 2019) and will continue to run beyond 29th March 2019. However, we do not hold the contract end dates for these procurements until they are signed contracts therefore we cannot provide an exact figure for these. BEIS also currently holds 147 contracts that were awarded after 23rd June 2016 which will still be live contracts after 29th March 2019.We do not hold centrally the number of bidders for each procurement process therefore we cannot provide an estimate.

Mash Holdings: Company Accounts

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, for what reason Companies House have not taken action in relation to late submitting of statutorily required accounts by MASH holdings limited Company Number 06861426.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 30 January 2019



Companies House is committed to ensuring companies file up to date. In line with the Companies Act 2006, Companies House has taken appropriate action to ensure the above company meets its filing obligations.

Post Offices

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if his Department will take steps to increase the number of main post offices; and what plans his Department has to undertake a consultation of post office service provision.

Kelly Tolhurst: Holding answer received on 30 January 2019



The Government recognises the critical role that post offices play in communities and for small businesses across the UK. This is why the Government committed to safeguard the post office network and protect existing rural services. The overall number of post offices across the UK remains at its most stable in decades with over 11,500 branches thanks to significant Government investment of over £2 billion since 2010.While the Government sets the strategic direction for the Post Office, it allows the company the commercial freedom to deliver this strategy as an independent business. The number of main post offices, and their locations, are operational matters for the Post Office.The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy conducted a consultation from 8 November to 21 December 2016 to understand what the British public wanted from their Post Office. The Government sought responses on the access criteria and the availability of services across the network. The consultation shaped Government decisions to leave access criteria unchanged, and work with the Post Office to extend availability of services to families and small businesses in rural areas. The response received from the Consultation played a central role in informing the Government’s commitment to £370 million of new funding for the Post Office to safeguard the network and invest in its future.The Post Office Network Consultation and the Government’s response is available at this link:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/post-office-network

Mineworkers' Pension Scheme

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what meetings he has had with trustees of the mineworkers' pension scheme in the last two years.

Claire Perry: I met the Trustees of the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme in June 2018 and our dialogue on potential scheme improvements continues. BEIS officials continue to meet the Trustees on a regular basis.

BMW: Oxford

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions his Department has held with BMW on the future of production at its Oxford plant in the event that the UK leaves the EU; and whether those discussions included the possibility of moving production away from the UK.

Richard Harrington: BMW is a hugely important company for the UK, and Government recognises that with 4,000 staff in their Oxford plant alone it is vital to both the national and local economy. BEIS Ministers and officials regularly meet with the company. My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State and Peter Schwarzenbauer, BMW Board Member with responsibility for the UK, last met on 28 November.The Government is determined to ensure that the UK continues to be one of the most competitive locations in the world for automotive and other advanced manufacturing.We are in close and continuous dialogue with BMW to understand and support them in their planning.

Companies House: Prosecutions

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many prosecutions Companies House has brought in each year since 2010.

Kelly Tolhurst: The number of prosecutions Companies House has brought in each year since 2010 is publicly available information. Information for prosecutions brought from 2010/11 to 2014/15 can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/companies-register-activities-statistical-release-20142015.The hon. Member should select the MS Excel version of the table and the data is in table D2Information for prosecutions brought from 2012/13 to 2017/18 can be found athttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/companies-house-management-information-tables-2017-18.The data is in Table 5 of the table.

Companies House: Company Investigations

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many companies have been struck off the companies register as a result of action by Companies House in each year since 2010.

Kelly Tolhurst: The number of companies struck off the company register as a result of action by Companies House in each year since 2010 is as follows. YearNumber of Companies2010/11178,4192011/12127,7582012/13128,9642013/14139,0152014/15161,7402015/16172,9892016/17202,2992017/18212,347

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Brexit

Lee Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington: The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 31 January, my department has laid 62 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Azerbaijan: Christianity

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Azerbaijan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Palestinian Authority on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Colombia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Bangladeshi counterpart on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Sri Lankan counterpart on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of the United Arab Emirates on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Oman on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Kuwait on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Malaysia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Russia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Kenya on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Mexico on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Qatar on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Tunisia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Brunei on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Morocco on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Kazakhstan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Bhutan on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Nepal on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Jordan on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Indonesia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Tajikstan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Ethiopia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of China on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Turkey on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Mauritania on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Mali on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Turkmenistan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Algeria on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Central African Republic on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Vietnam on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Laos on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Myanmar on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Uzbekistan on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Egypt on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Saudi Arabia on its inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Iraq on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Nigeria on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Syria on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of India on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Iran on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Yemen on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Eritrea on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Sudan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Pakistan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Libya on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Somalia on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Afghanistan on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of North Korea on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Government of Maldives on that country's inclusion in the Open Doors 2019 World Watch List of the top 50 countries where Christians face persecution.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary and I, alongside other British Government Ministers, routinely raise our concerns about the persecution of religious minorities, including Christians, where this occurs. He recently asked the Bishop of Truro to conduct an independent review of the persecution of Christians around the world to help inform this important area of our work and ensure it is targeted and effective. The Government works with a large number of NGOs, including Open Doors, to help promote and protect freedom of religion or belief. We use information from a wide range of sources to inform our work.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) employs around 12,500 staff, a third of whom are UK-based and two thirds local staff. We only hold data centrally for UK-based staff.The number of FCO UK-based staff who are Sikhs is 0.75 per cent. The most recent UK census data estimated that Sikhs are 0.7 per cent of the UK population.The diversity characteristic used to report this is religion.

Iran: Human Rights

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Iran on legal and political restrictions on human rights campaigners.

Alistair Burt: ​Legal and political restrictions on human rights campaigners are deeply worrying. I last raised this issue with my counterpart during my visit to Tehran in November 2018, and we continue to raise human rights with the Government of Iran at all levels.

Oleg Kozlovsky

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Russia on the reported abduction of Oleg Kozlovsky.

Sir Alan Duncan: Immediately following the reports in October of Kozlovsky’s abduction and torture, the UK Government worked with the EU to issue a joint statement to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe. In this statement, we called on the Russian authorities to conduct an investigation, and to bring to justice the perpetrators of the attackI note that the Russian authorities subsequently began a criminal investigation in December. The international community awaits the results of this investigation.

Law of War

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Consolidated Guidance is applied to information sharing where there is a serious risk of the use of lethal force.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Consolidated Guidance sets out the principles governing the interviewing of detainees overseas and the passing and receipt of intelligence relating to detainees. The UK Government does not participate in, solicit, encourage or condone the use of torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment for any purpose. In a situation where there is a risk to detainees, the process set out in the Consolidated Guidance is applied

Mali: Armed Conflict

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of reports that climate change is exacerbating conflict in Mali; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: ​We agree that climate change is exacerbating conflict in Mali and the broader Sahel region, particularly by increasing competition over land and resources. The causes of conflict in Mali are, however, wider than climate change and include in particular issues around governance, demography, terrorism and organised crime.

Sudan: Demonstrations

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations his Department has made to the Government of Sudan on that Government's response to protests in that country.

Harriett Baldwin: I raised concern regarding the response to protests in Sudan, including the use of lethal force, with the Sudanese Foreign Minister on 22 January and emphasised the importance of respect for the rule of law and for human rights. In addition, senior officials in Khartoum continue to engage regularly with the Government of Sudan to register UK concerns directly, stressing the need for an end to violence and delivering much needed economic and political reforms for the people of Sudan.

Sudan: Demonstrations

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many peaceful protesters have been (a) killed and (b) injured by Government of Sudan's security forces since December 2018.

Harriett Baldwin: Reports of the number of deaths and injuries vary. On 24 January the Government of Sudan reported that 29 deaths had occurred. Activist groups and Non-Governmental Organisations assess the number to be considerably higher. We are unable to verify these figures independently, but we continue to express our deep concern at the current situation, both bilaterally and as part of the Troika (with the USA and Norway). We continue to monitor the situation closely.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Brexit

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress he has made in laying Statutory Instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is making good progress on its EU Exit statutory instrument programme. The statutory instruments relating to areas of the FCO's responsibility other than sanctions have all been laid in Parliament. In relation to sanctions, the Department has laid five instruments and is preparing to lay further instruments before exit day under both the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 and the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Oliver Dowden: Records from the IPA for Q1 16/17 (i.e. June 30th 2016) note 152.2 FTE public sector employees to be working on the following GMPP initiatives at that snapshot date: Commercial Capability Programme, FOXHOUND Programme, GOV UK Verify, Government Hubs Programme, ISSC1, ISSC2, New Property Model. Records from both the IPA and Cabinet Office Portfolio Office for Q3 18/19 (i.e. December 31st 2018) note 286.2 FTE public sector employees to be working on the following GMPP initiatives at that snapshot date: Future Services (Pensions), Commercial Capability Programme – Expansion, Common Technology Services, Government as a Platform, Verify, Government Property Hubs Programme, Foxhound, New Property Model Programme

Personal Income: Leicester

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average annual earnings were of the bottom five deciles in Leicester in (a) 2015, (b) 2016, (c) 2017 and (d) 2018.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 84.24 KB)

Life Expectancy

Grahame Morris: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the healthy life expectancy is for people living in (a) Easington constituency, (b) County Durham and (c) England.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 66.76 KB)

Cabinet Office: Brexit

Lee Rowley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Chloe Smith: The Government has made good progress in laying the statutory instrumentsrequired by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 31 January, my departmenthas laid four exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments arepublished on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title

Government Departments: Billing

Marion Fellows: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the target time is for the Government to make payments to small and medium-sized enterprises; and (a) how many and (b) what percentage of payments by the Government met that target in 2018.

Oliver Dowden: Government policy is to pay 80% of undisputed supplier invoices within a 5 day target, with the remaining to be paid within 30 days, as required by the Public Contracts RegulationsIn October 2018, the government announced the ambition that all departments commit to paying 90% of undisputed invoices from SMEs within 5 days. Officials are working with departments to explore how finance systems are able to accomplish thisDepartments are required to publish their prompt payment performance on a quarterly basis on GOV.UK.

Department of Health and Social Care

Fractures: Older People

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people aged 65 and over suffered a hip fracture as a result of a fall in each year since 2009-10.

Caroline Dinenage: A count of finished admission episodes (FAEs) with a primary diagnosis of hip fracture and where there was an external cause of fall, for patients aged 65 and over for the years 2009-10 to 2017-18, is shown in the following table. This is a count of admissions, not patients, as the same patient may have been admitted on more than one occasion within the time period: YearFAEs2009-1036,0062010-1135,7342011-1235,8262012-1335,6692013-1437,3102014-1536,9932015-1635,8062016-1735,8912017-1836,544Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS Digital

Accidents: Older People

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many falls among people aged 65 and over led to a hospital admission in each year since 2009-10; and what the five most frequent types of such falls resulting in such admissions were.

Caroline Dinenage: A count of finished admission episodes (FAEs) for patients aged 65 and over which have been classified as having been caused by a fall is shown in the following table. These are for the financial years 2009-10 through to 2017-18. This is a count of admissions, not patients, as the same patient may have been admitted on more than one occasion within the time period: Financial yearCount of FAEs2009-10274,1032010-11295,1362011-12309,6682012-13259,6692013-14266,6492014-15282,7192015-16291,5312016-17294,5592017-18312,301Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS Digital The five most frequent specified types of falls which have resulted in admissions for patients aged 65 and over in the financial years 2009-10 through to 2017-18 are listed below:1) Fall on the same level from slipping, tripping and stumbling2) Other fall on the same level3) Fall on and from stairs and steps4) Fall involving bed5) Fall involving chair

Influenza: Vaccination

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of GP patients have received a vaccination against influenza in each clinical commissioning group area in each year since 2013.

Steve Brine: Data on the proportion of general practitioner patients that have received the influenza vaccination in each clinical commissioning group in each year since 2013 could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Health Professions: Training

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many students entered training to become a (a) nurse, (b) midwife and (c) GP in England in each of the last five years.

Stephen Hammond: The number of students who started nursing and midwifery courses over recent years are shown in the following table. Number of entrants to nursing and midwifery courses in England from 2013/14 to 2017/18Year of entry2013/142014/152015/162016/172017/18Number of nursing entrants17,56819,14719,94920,88819,295Number of midwifery entrants2,5402,5352,5912,6022,692Source: Health Education England, Education Commissioning dataset The number of trainee doctors that were accepted onto general practitioner (GP) training programmes in England is shown in the following table. Total number of trainee doctors accepted onto general practice training programmes in EnglandEntry year2014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19Acceptances to GP training2,6712,7693,0193,1573,473Source: General Practice National Recruitment Office Note:A small minority of those accepted may not have enrolled onto their programme.

Blood: Donors

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many units of blood were collected by NHS Blood and Transplant England in each of the last 12 months for which data is available.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The following table sets out the number of units of blood collected by NHS Blood and Transplant in each of the last 12 months.MonthBlood DonationsJanuary 2018134,844February 2018113,473March 2018128,043April 2018130,438May 2018128,958June 2018120,165July 2018124,537August 2018130,478September 2018112,355October 2018132,976November 2018129,868December 2018116,021Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

Patients: Safety

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many incidents recorded in the National Patient Safety Agency's National Reporting and Learning System were classified as never events in each year since 2008.

Caroline Dinenage: The following table shows data collected on Never Events from 2010/11, the first year when data was available. Never Events are serious incidents or errors that should never occur if proper safety procedures are followed. Never Events Data was collected by the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS) and the Strategic Executive Information System (StEIS) until 2013. Since April 2013 data has been collected from StEIS only. The data from these two systems are not directly comparable due to differences in the way incidents are identified and reported. The number of events, and definitions of events contained in the Never Event List, are modified regularly, so direct year-on-year comparisons are not appropriate. The data for 2017/18 is provisional and still to be confirmed in the annual data summary. Number of Never EventsYearData SourceTotal2010/11NRLS56StEIS1662011/12NRLS163StEIS3262012/13NRLS237StEIS3292013/14StEIS3382014/15StEIS3062015/16StEIS3452016/17StEIS4452017/18 (provisional)StEIS393 (April 2017-January 2018) 76 (February-March 2018)* Note:*Revised framework and list of Never Events from 1 February 2018

Postnatal Depression

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve the quality of data on the number of women diagnosed with post-natal depression.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS Digital and NHS England are working to improve the quality of data on the number of women diagnosed with post-natal depression by improving the Maternity Services Dataset (MSDS) and the Mental Health Services Dataset (MHSDS). The MSDS currently only collects information on whether or not the recommended questions for the prediction and detection of mental health issues were asked at a mother’s antenatal booking appointment. The new version of the MSDS (due to commence in April 2019) will expand on this by including questionnaires such as the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, to improve the detection and prediction of mental health problems. Information about specialised perinatal mental health services is captured within the MHSDS, including the recording of a post-natal depression diagnosis. NHS Digital published linked data between the MSDS and the MHSDS for the first time in June 2017 to support improvement in the identification of women in the perinatal period in secondary care. This identified a number of data quality issues which are being addressed via the cross arm’s length body programme of work aiming to improve the quality of mental health data collected within the MHSDS. Monthly data quality reports are also published showing provider level data validation of selected key data items in the MHSDS. These reports are available as part of the Mental Health Services Monthly Statistics available at the following link: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/mental-health-services-monthly-statistics

Blood: Donors

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department spent on advertising to encourage people to donate blood in each financial year since 2010-11.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) is responsible for the collection, manufacturing and issuing of blood products to the NHS in England. NHSBT collects around 1.5 million blood donations every year to make sure hospitals have the blood they need to treat patients.The following table sets out NHSBT’s total spend on marketing to encourage people to donate blood in each financial year since 2010-11.  Blood Marketing Expenditure (£)2010/1111,292,6572011/1210,858,4662012/1310,156,1402013/149,852,4632014/1510,339,7712015/1610,445,7712016/179,642,3272017/1810,134,566 Source: NHS Blood and Transplant

NHS Walk-in Centres

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many people visited an NHS walk-in centre in each year since 2009/10.

Stephen Hammond: Information is not available in the format requested. NHS England publishes data surrounding the number of attendances at Type 3 accident and emergency departments. This includes attendees to walk-in centres, but also to services such as minor injury units. This is available at national level via the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/ae-waiting-times-and-activity/ae-attendances-and-emergency-admissions-2018-19/

Hospitals: Malnutrition

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS patients died of starvation in NHS hospitals in each of the last 10 years.

Caroline Dinenage: Information relating to death by starvation is National Health Service hospitals is not held centrally. There is no statutory definition of “starvation” in the Health and Social Care Act 2008, or subordinate legislation.

NHS: Drugs

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to maintain the supply of medication for epilepsy after the UK leaves the EU.

Stephen Hammond: Our European Union exit medicines supply contingency plans aim to ensure that the supply of epilepsy medicines and other essential medicines is not disrupted in all EU exit scenarios.

NHS: Pensions

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reasons the consultation on changes to NHS pension schemes only runs from 4 January to 28 January 2019.

Stephen Hammond: The Department set out the proposed changes in a consultation document titled ‘NHS Pension Scheme: proposed changes to scheme regulations 2019’. This was published on 18 December 2018, with the consultation period closing on 28 January 2019. Prior to the finalisation of the consultation document, the proposals included in the consultation were shared and discussed with the NHS Pension Scheme Advisory Board in October. This a statutory board, comprising NHS Trade Union and employer representatives, that advises the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the merits of making changes to the scheme. The consultation period is proportionate to the nature and impact of changes being proposed. HM Treasury has committed to providing extra funding to meet the costs to the National Health Service arising from the actuarial valuation of the NHS Pension Scheme. Work is ongoing to ensure the additional cost to participating employers is appropriately funded. No change is proposed to member contribution rates, following a recommendation by the Scheme Advisory Board to renew current arrangements. Some proposed changes simply make necessary changes to implement legal judgments, one of which, together with some other amendments had already been consulted on in an earlier consultation exercise. Some are minor or technical changes. The changes regarding forfeiture only affect a small number of members, such as those convicted of certain offences.

Health

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU without a withdrawal agreement on the risks to life.

Stephen Hammond: The Government has agreed the Withdrawal Agreement with the European Commission, which includes an implementation period that will run from March 2019 until December 2020. During this time, the supply of medicines will remain unchanged. As a responsible Government, however, we continue to prepare proportionately for all scenarios, including ‘no deal’.Along with other Government departments, the Department has stepped up its planning for a ‘no deal’ scenario. We have robust plans in place to protect patient safety and healthcare provision. We are confident that if everyone does what they should do, patients will continue to receive high-quality care unhindered, and the supply of medicines and other medical supplies will be uninterrupted in the event of exiting the EU without a deal.

Cancer: Diagnosis

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if there will be a full public consultation as part of Sir Mike Richards’ review of current cancer screening programmes and diagnostic capacity.

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to consult patients as part of Sir Mike Richards’ review of cancer screening programmes and diagnostic capacity.

Mark Tami: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether Sir Mike Richards’ review of current cancer screening programmes and diagnostic capacity will consider the level of access to breast cancer screening for high risk groups.

Steve Brine: NHS England asked Sir Mike Richards to lead a review to improve the delivery of the screening programmes, increase uptake, learn the lessons from the recent issues around breast and cervical screening, and modernise and expand diagnostic capacity in England. The independent review of cancer screening will include a ‘call for evidence’, however we understand from NHS England that there are no plans for a full public consultation. The review will take account of views from partner organisations including charities and patient representative groups. Patients are also invited to engage with the review and patient groups will be consulted through engagement with partner organisations including charities and patient representative groups as part the ‘call for evidence’. The review will assess current strengths and weaknesses in the current commissioning and delivery arrangements for the national cancer screening programmes, including breast cancer screening, in England and how best to maximise uptake across geographies and population groups.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Research

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent funding has been made available for research into myalgic encephalomyelitis.

Caroline Dinenage: The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), on behalf of the Department, funded £1,495,363 of programme research on myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), also known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), over the last three financial years (up to 2017/18). Further information on this research is available through the NIHR Journals Library at the following link:https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including ME/CFS; it is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality.

Surgical Mesh Implants

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that as a result of the pause in the use of surgical mesh and tape procedures future clinical guidelines do not restrict access to less invasive treatment options.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The National Health Service website makes clear that conservative treatments such as pelvic floor exercises and lifestyle changes should be tried before surgery or other procedures to treat patients suffering from stress urinary incontinence or pelvic organ prolapse. Additionally, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is in the process of producing guidance entitled ‘Urinary incontinence (update) and pelvic organ prolapse in women: management.’ The draft guideline published on 9 October 2018 states that multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) should ‘review the proposed treatment for all women offered invasive procedures for primary stress UI, OAB or primary prolapse’. MDTs should include a pelvic floor specialist physiotherapist who will be able to advise on alternatives to surgery. The final guideline is expected to be published in April this year.

Incontinence: Females

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that women with stress urinary incontinence have access to information on the full range of treatment options available.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is in the process of producing guidance entitled ‘Urinary incontinence (update) and pelvic organ prolapse in women: management.’ The draft guideline published on 9 October 2018 makes clear that where stress incontinence is the predominant symptom in mixed urinary incontinence, clinicians should “discuss with the women the benefit of non-surgical management and medicines for [overactive bladder] before offering surgery.” The final guideline is expected to be published in April this year.

Health Services: Reciprocal Arrangements

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that British citizens who are travelling to EU countries on 29 March 2019 will still have access to healthcare under the European Health Insurance Card.

Stephen Hammond: Under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, United Kingdom nationals will be able to continue benefiting from existing European Union provisions, such as the European Health Insurance Card scheme, until the end of the Implementation Period at the end of December 2020. The UK Government remains committed to leaving the EU with a deal. In the event, that the UK leaves the EU without a deal, the UK Government will seek reciprocal arrangements with EU Member States so that UK nationals do not face sudden changes to their healthcare cover.

NHS: Waiting Lists

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding will be provided to the NHS to tackle waiting times after the UK leaves the EU.

Stephen Hammond: The NHS budget will increase by £20.5 billion in real terms by 2023/24. This means that the NHS budget is growing more than twice as fast as the economy is forecast to grow – reflecting that the NHS is this Government’s top spending priority. The extra funding for the NHS will apply in all European Union exit scenarios in order to ensure it is there for the long term.

NHS: Waiting Lists

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reasons waiting time targets have not been included in the NHS Long Term Plan.

Stephen Hammond: The clinically-led review of standards was announced by the Prime Minister in June 2018. The review is considering the appropriateness of operational standards for physical and mental health relating to planned, unplanned urgent or emergency care, including cancer. The Long Term Plan provides a platform upon which innovative models of patient care can and are being developed. In that context, the National Health Service’s National Medical Director has been working with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Healthwatch England and many others to consider what matters most to patients, on the clinical issues with the current target regime, and what NHS staff believe will help them provide the best quality care for patients. The review will report its interim findings in the spring of 2019, after which any recommended changes will be carefully field tested across the NHS. In addition, NHS England’s ‘Operational and Planning Guidance for 2019/20’ sets out deliverables against key performance areas and the Government expects the NHS to deliver these actions set– in full – as key steps towards fully recovering performance against core access standards.

NHS: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the informal consultation with stakeholder representative bodies on changes to the Human Medicines Regulation 2012 to ensure the continuity of supply of medicines (including in a no deal Brexit), which stakeholders his Department approached for response to that consultation; and what the selection criteria were for those organisations.

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the explanatory memorandum to the Human Medicines (Amendment) Regulations 2019, what steps his Department took to come to the conclusions that (a) the main benefits of the protocol would be the NHS cost savings associated with GP time and (b) the effect on community pharmacies is expected to be neutral.

Steve Brine: The Department consulted stakeholder representative bodies representing pharmacists, doctors, patient groups and the pharmaceutical industry and asked those bodies to share the consultation as they saw fit. A total of 47 responses were received. The main benefit of a serious shortage protocol is that patients continue to have access to treatment without undue delays. In addition, the Department expects that where a protocol is in place, it will reduce pressure on general practitioners because they do not have to see all patients to issue a new prescription. For pharmacists, whilst a protocol would likely increase their workload, it would also reduce pressure as pharmacists would not need to liaise with GPs every time they get a prescription. Protocols for therapeutic or generic equivalents will not be suitable for all medicines and patients. A protocol will therefore free up GP time to spend for the patients who most need it.

NHS: Drugs

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the informal consultation with stakeholder representative bodies on changes to the Human Medicines Regulation 2012 to ensure the continuity of supply of medicines (including in a no deal Brexit), what the (a) process  and (b) governance arrangements will be for protocols to be developed and signed off centrally by clinicians.

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's informal consultation with stakeholder representative bodies on changes to the Human Medicines Regulation 2012 to ensure the continuity of supply of medicines (including in a no deal Brexit), published on 14 January 2019, what (a) formal processes and (b) governance arrangements will be in place to ensure that any serious shortage designation has been reached in a robust manner.

Steve Brine: The Department has well-established governance processes and arrangements for managing medicine shortages in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, clinicians and the National Health Service and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). A serious shortage protocol is only one of the tools that can be used to manage shortages. This protocol would only be introduced in case of a serious shortage, if it would help manage the supply situation and if clinicians think it is appropriate, after discussion with the manufacturer and/or marketing authorisation holder when other mitigation measures have been exhausted. Work on operationalising the serious shortage legislation, including the governance processes is ongoing, including the creation of a national, clinically-chaired group advising Ministers and national oversight at senior doctor level. The operation of the serious shortage protocol legislation will be reviewed one year after the first protocol has been issued.

NHS: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to his answer of 22 January 2019 to question 209341: NHS Finance, and with reference to with Department’s press release: Record NHS funding to give patients a better alternative to hospital on 21 November 2018, what the existing NHS budget is referred to in that press release for (a) primary care and (b) community healthcare; what the planned NHS budget is for (i) primary care and (ii) community healthcare in 2023-24; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Brine: In the Long Term Plan the National Health Service commits to increasing investment in primary medical and community health services as a share of the total national NHS revenue spend across the five years from 2019/20 to 2023/24. This means spending on these services will be at least £4.5 billion higher in five years’ time. Details of the baseline will be set out by the NHS before spring 2019 as part of the planning round.

Haemochromatosis: Research

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding his Department has made available for research into haemochromatosis.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including haemochromatosis. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. Information on individual projects funded by the NIHR can be found at the following link: https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/ NIHR funded infrastructure is currently supporting a clinical trial into haemochromatosis, through the NIHR Clinical Research Network Coordinating Centre. The trial is testing a new formulation of hepcidin as a treatment for haemochromatosis.

Breast Cancer: Nurses

Bambos Charalambous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to invest in recruiting and training additional secondary breast cancer Clinical Nurse Specialists to ensure people have access to expertise and support.

Steve Brine: The NHS Cancer Programme aims to improve access to cancer Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS) for all cancer patients when they need it, including those with secondary breast cancer. The new NHS Long Term Plan commitment is that all patients, including those with secondary cancers, will have access to the right expertise and support, including a CNS or other support worker by 2021. Following publication of the Long Term Plan, Health Education England will work with NHS England and NHS Improvement to understand the longer-term workforce implications for further development of cancer services. This will include work to expand the number of CNS and develop clear CNS competencies and routes into training.

Health Education England: Finance

Bambos Charalambous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether additional funding is planned to allocated to Health Education England for training, education and continuing professional development to help ensure the delivery of the NHS Long Term Plan.

Stephen Hammond: My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has commissioned Baroness Harding working closely with Sir David Behan to lead a number of programmes to engage with key National Health Service interests to develop a detailed workforce implementation plan. These programmes will consider detailed proposals to grow the workforce, including consideration of additional staff and skills required, build a supportive working culture in the NHS and ensure first rate leadership for NHS staff. Baroness Harding and Sir David will present initial recommendations to the Department in spring 2019. A final workforce implementation plan will follow later in the year, taking into account the outcomes of the Spending Review. We recognise the importance of workforce training to underpin effective long-term NHS planning. That is why we have already made commitments in this Spending Review into the next Spending Review period – for example on medical training places. At the forthcoming Spending Review, we will consider proposals from the NHS for a multi-year funding plan for clinical training places, based on the workforce requirements of the NHS plan.

Health Services: Immigrants

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to Public Health England's consultation on the impact of data-sharing arrangements under the memorandum of understanding on the health and healthcare-seeking behaviour of migrants, whether the findings of that consultation will be published; when the results of that consultation will be published; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: On 9 May 2018, the Minister of State for Digital and the Creative Industries (Margot James MP), announced that the Government will be amending the data request arrangements covered under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between NHS Digital, the Home Office and the Department of Health and Social Care. This would narrow when the Home Office can request non-clinical information from NHS Digital to very limited circumstances.The Department commissioned a review from Public Health England (PHE) in 2017 into the impact on public health and health-seeking behaviour of the previous MOU, which was withdrawn on 9 November 2018. The Department has asked PHE to extend their review to provide advice on the potential impact of the narrowed scope of a new MOU. This will be published when it is complete.

General Practitioners: Insurance

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the merits of changes to the indemnity arrangements for GPs to encourage more permanent rather than locum contracts.

Steve Brine: The state-backed scheme is being designed to meet the needs of current and future professionals in general practice, offer affordable cover for these professionals, and offer value for money for taxpayers. The scheme is intended to cover clinical negligence liabilities of all general practice staff delivering primary medical services commissioned under General Medical Services, Personal Medical Services and Alternative Provider Medical Services contracts and any integrated urgent care delivered by general practice through schedule 2L of the NHS Standard Contract. The scheme will therefore also cover locums engaged in the delivery of these services. A key objective of the policy is that it contributes to improving retention and recruitment in general practice, therefore increasing workforce capacity and stability, and improving access to general practice services for patients.

General Practitioners: Insurance

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to announce proposals for a state-backed GP indemnity scheme; and whether he plans to have a formal consultation on those proposals.

Steve Brine: The former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Rt. hon. Jeremy Hunt MP) announced in October 2017 that the Department would introduce state-backed indemnity for general practice. The state-backed scheme is being designed to meet the needs of current and future professionals in general practice, offer affordable cover for these professionals, and offer value for money for taxpayers. We are working towards implementing the scheme from April 2019. We are, and have throughout the development of the proposals for general practitioner (GP) state indemnity been, working closely with key stakeholders including GP representatives and medical defence organisations as the scheme develops. We consider that focused engagement with the relevant stakeholders on the emerging policy direction is a more effective way of ensuring that the representations of those affected are taken into account than via a public consultation. Information about the scheme for general practice professionals was published online in November 2018 and this will be developed further to ensure professionals understand what the changes mean for them.

Health Services

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department retains records on the proposed reconfiguration of local health services.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not routinely hold records of all proposed service changes. The provision of services is a matter for local National Health Service organisations, overseen by independent regulators, which must work together ensure that services are safe and meet patient needs. It is right that these matters are addressed at this level where the local healthcare needs are best understood.

NHS: Pay

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average salary was of an NHS (a) nurse, (b) midwife and (c) health visitor in (i) the latest period for which figures are available and (ii) each year since 1997.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics for England. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups, but not staff working in primary care or in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers. The data provided is based on information from the Electronic Staff Record which is the HR and Payroll system that has been used throughout the NHS since 2009. This information is not available for the period 1997 to 2009. The attached table shows average annual earnings for nurses, health visitors and midwives, in NHS trusts in England, between October 2009 and September 2018 (headcount) alongside average annual basic pay per full time equivalent (FTE). Nurses and midwives earnings are made up of basic pay plus, where applicable, unsocial hours payments, on call payments and high cost area supplements. These figures use the total annual earnings of staff which includes basic pay and non-basic pay elements. These total figures include staff working on a part time basis, who tend to have lower annual earnings than those on full time contracts. As at May 2017, around 35% of the nursing workforce were on part time contracts. The attached table shows the total number of nurses, health visitors and midwives and those who work part time.



PQ212360 attached document
(Word Document, 21.83 KB)

Drugs: Shortages

Anne Marie Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's informal consultation with stakeholder representative bodies on changes to the Human Medicines Regulation 2012 to ensure the continuity of supply of medicines including in a no deal Brexit, published on 14 January 2019, whether any responses to that consultation raised concern about the consultation process; and if his Department will publish the responses to that consultation.

Steve Brine: Whilst there was no statutory obligation to consult on these changes to the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, the Department engaged with stakeholder representative bodies representing pharmacists, doctors, patient groups and the pharmaceutical industry about its proposals. As part of that engagement, it also conducted a short written consultation. Some respondents raised concerns about the short duration of the written consultation. In response, the Department has included a review clause in the legislation, putting an obligation on the Department to review the operation of the legislation, one year after issuing the first protocol. In addition, in the Explanatory Memorandum, the Department has committed to conducting a consultation as part of that review. The Explanatory Memorandum also reflects the main concerns raised in the consultation. Because the consultation was not a public one, the Department’s response to the consultation has not been published but has been sent to all respondents and is available on request.

NHS: Finance

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 209341 on NHS Finance, and with reference to paragraph 5.10 of the Budget 2018 Red Book, what proportion of the NHS budget is (a) spent on (b) for mental health services; what (c) proportion of the NHS budget he plans to spend on and (d) estimate he has made of the NHS budget for mental health services in 2023-24; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: For 2017/18, the most recent year available, the spend on mental health overall, and as a proportion of the overall National Health Service budget, is shown in the following table. This gives information on the mental health expenditure recorded by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and specialised commissioned services. NHS England mental health spend, as a proportion of overall health spend 2017/18 CCG mental health spendSpecialised mental health spendTotal CCG and specialised mental healthCCG and Specialised mental spend as a % of allocation £ million£ million£ million 2017/1810,0801,89611,97613.3%Source: NHS England The 2018 Budget confirmed that spend on mental health services will grow as a share of the overall NHS budget over the next five years. The Department does not hold the requested estimated breakdown of future funding into mental health services specifically. How future NHS budgets will be spent will depend on the commissioning decisions of individual commissioner organisations.

Genito-urinary Medicine: Contracts

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many contacts with Sexual and Reproductive Health Services occurred in each year since 2015-16 (a) in total, (b) face-to-face at a physical location and (c) non-face to face.

Steve Brine: Data on contacts with sexual and reproductive health services that occurred in each year since 2015-16 in total, face-to-face at a physical location and non-face to face is set out in the following table:  Total contacts(Thousands) Contacts by consultation mediumFace to faceNon face to face1, 22015-162,032.4Not availableNot available2016-171,886.21,858.827.42017-181,787.61,773.613.9 Notes: These data are published in the annual sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services reports.Data has been rounded to the nearest five contacts.1 For example, by e-mail, telephone, SMS, talk type.2 Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust incorrectly recorded approximately 8,960 records as non-face to face contacts which should have been recorded as face to face contacts.

Health Services: Fuel Poverty

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2019 to Question 206216 on public health: fuel poverty, whether his Department has made an assessment of the cost to the health service of fuel poverty.

Steve Brine: Public Health England has made no estimate on the cost of fuel poverty to the National Health Service.

Air Pollution: Research

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2019 to Question 206215 on air pollution, if he will take steps to commission further research into the effects on health of ultrafine particles.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department is investing over £1 billion a year in health research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The NIHR will consider funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including the effect of ultrafine particles. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. The Department will also consider areas for research into air pollution and more specifically ultrafine particles from research recommendations and priorities identified by the Committee on Medical Effects of Air Pollutants and by Public Health England.

Health Services: Pollution

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the NHS of emissions of (a) PM0.1, (b) PM1 and (c) PM2.5 (i) generally and (ii) from waste incineration sites.

Steve Brine: Between 2017 and 2025, the total cost to the National Health Service and social care of air pollution in England is estimated to be £1.54 billion for PM2.5. In England, the total NHS and social care cost due to PM2.5 in 2017 was estimated to be £41.20 million, increasing to £76.10 million when diseases are included where the evidence is less robust for an association. Further information is available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/708854/Estimation_of_costs_to_the_NHS_and_social_care_due_to_the_health_impacts_of_air_pollution.pdf Public Health England in collaboration with the United Kingdom Health Forum and Imperial College, London has published a report and tool allowing the estimation of costs to the NHS of air pollution. The tool does not estimate the costs to NHS specifically from waste incinerator sites.

Incinerators: Health Hazards

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative assessment he has made of the health effects of (a) PM0.1 and (b) PM1 in countries that (i) do and (ii) do not have waste incineration plants.

Steve Brine: Public Health England has not made a comparative assessment of the health effects of particulate matter (PM0.1 and PM1) in countries that do and do not have waste incineration plants.

Symkevi

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to ensure people can access Skymkevi through the NHS.

Steve Brine: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) began its appraisal of tezacaftor and ivacaftor therapy (Symkevi) for treating cystic fibrosis with the F508del mutation in 2017. However, in August 2018, Vertex took the decision to not engage in the NICE appraisal of Symkevi. As a result, NICE had no choice other than to suspend this appraisal, and is currently considering next steps. This decision from Vertex follows its rejection of NHS England’s final offer for reimbursement of its portfolio of cystic fibrosis drugs in the region of £500 million over five years.

Social Services: Finance

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to page 31 of the NHS Long Term Plan, published in January 2019, what additional social care funding the Government plans to provide to meet the commitment that adult social care funding does not impose any additional pressure on the NHS over the coming five years.

Caroline Dinenage: Funding for adult social care in future years will be settled in the Spending Review where the overall approach to funding local government will be considered.

Suicide: Young People

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of suicides among young people under 21 in each of the last five years that had a link to content seen on social media.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Data on the number of suicides that had a link to content seen on social media is not available.

NHS: Drugs

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the charter of air freight to transport medicines into the UK in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Stephen Hammond: In August 2018, the Department wrote to all pharmaceutical companies that supply prescription-only and pharmacy medicines to the United Kingdom that come from, or via, the European Union or European Economic Area asking them to ensure a minimum of six weeks additional supply in the UK, over and above existing business-as-usual buffer stocks, by 29 March 2019 in a ‘no deal’ exit scenario. In doing so we recognised that certain medicines with short shelf lives, including medical radioisotopes, cannot be reasonably stockpiled and so we asked that suppliers ensure in advance plans to air freight these medicines from the EU in the event of a ‘no deal’ exit. The Department recognises that, by participating in the programme, suppliers may incur additional costs by switching to air freight. The Department continues to consider how best it may support medicine suppliers taking part in the contingency programme.

Pregnancy: Mental Health Services

Dr Paul Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, to his oral contribution of 15 January 2019, Official Report, column 1005, what steps he is taking in relation to the GP Contract negotiations to improve the six-week perinatal mental health check for new mothers.

Steve Brine: The potential for a six week post-natal maternal health check for all mothers was included in the negotiating remit for the 2019/20 general practitioner (GP) contract. Discussions were held with the GP profession and it was agreed that proposals should be developed outside of the contract process.

Emigration: Children

Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2019 to Question 206773 on Emigration: Children, what involvement former child migrants have had in the development of the ex gratia payment scheme announced by the Government.

Jackie Doyle-Price: On 19 December the Government published its response to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse's Interim Report and its report on Child Migration Programmes. The response states that the Government will establish an ex-gratia payment scheme and will ensure that former child migrants receive a payment as soon as possible, in recognition of the fundamentally flawed nature of the historic child migration policy. The Government is working closely with the Child Migrants Trust to develop and establish the payment scheme, about which further details will be provided shortly.

NHS: Finance

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much of the £300 Million funding announced in the 2015 Comprehensive Spending Review been allocated to (a) new diagnostic equipment and (b) additional staff capacity.

Stephen Hammond: The 2015 Comprehensive Spending Review made a commitment to invest up to £300 million per year by 2020/21. The published financial profile agreed for the NHS England Cancer Programme over the four years to 2020/21 was: 2017/182018/192019/202020/21£123 million£140 million£154 million£190 million This is being invested in earlier diagnosis and personalised care, including additional staff capacity and equipment. In addition, £130 million has been invested to modernise radiotherapy equipment. Funding has been allocated for over 80 new or upgraded linear accelerators across the country since October 2016.

Health: Screening

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress the Government has made on meeting the target set out in the 2015 Comprehensive Spending Review to provide 2 million more diagnostic tests per year by 2020-21; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: NHS England publishes monthly data on diagnostic waiting times which includes the volume of patients waiting for a diagnostic test at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/monthly-diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/ In 2017/18 the National Health Service carried out 21.9 million diagnostic tests, nearly 1.7 million more than in 2015/16. The Long Term Plan launched on 7 January 2019 by the NHS and supported by the Government sets out plans to improve and modernise diagnostic processes to meet the demands of a modern National Health Service.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) posts and (b) vacancies were there in mental health NHS trusts in England in the most recent month for which data is available.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The most recent data reported in Q2 2018/19, as at the end of September 2018, shows that in mental health National Health Service trusts there are 190,185 whole time equivalent (WTE) workforce staff in post, with 19,889 vacancies. This is a vacancy rate of 9.5% out of a total workforce establishment (210,074 WTE).There are 53 mental health NHS trusts, defined as those with over half of their outpatient activity in mental health specialties. Not all staff in these trusts provide mental health services and some mental health services are provided by other trusts.NHS Improvement collect vacancy rates from individual NHS providers and publish them as part of their ‘Quarterly performance of the NHS provider sector’ report. NHS Improvement defines a vacancy as the current workforce gap between current substantive staff in post and the required staffing level for the respective period.NHS Improvement count staff working substantively within a designated mental health NHS trust in England as one definition of the size of the mental health workforce. Currently, there is no single agreed way to count the entire mental health workforce. The Department, working together with NHS Digital, Health Education England, NHS Improvement and NHS England, are in a process of agreeing a new definition to count the mental health workforce in NHS trusts and clinical commissioning groups.

Mental Health Services: Termination of Employment

Paula Sherriff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many mental health staff have left the NHS since 31 May 2018.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS Digital publishes Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) workforce statistics. These include staff working in hospital trusts and clinical commissioning groups, but not staff working in primary care or in general practitioner surgeries, local authorities or other providers.In England, 12,7981 mental health staff left the National Health Service between 31 May 2018 and 31 October 2018, headcount.The figure above provides the widest possible view of the mental health workforce available from NHS Digital and includes:- All staff in mental health, learning disability and care trusts;- Psychiatry doctors;- Nurses specialising in ‘community psychiatry’, ‘other psychiatry’, ‘community learning disabilities’, ‘other learning disabilities’- Staff with a primary area of work of ‘psychiatry’, for example a paediatrician whose primary area of work is ‘psychiatry’. Data for Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is not available on the Electronic Staff Record and therefore, not included in the figure above.Note:1Source: NHS Digital, NHS HCHS workforce statistics.

Health: Children

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his Department has invested in child health research in each of the last five years.

Caroline Dinenage: The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), which has a broad portfolio of research on child health. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health. It is not usual practice to ring-fence funds for particular topics or conditions. Applications for funding are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. The following table shows information provided by the NIHR on research funding on child health, over each of the last five years. Further information on this research is available through the NIHR Journals Library at the following link: https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/ The figure given for 2013-14 excludes Clinical Research Network spend as that year information was not collected in a comparable way.Financial Year£2013-1430,743,7192014-1556,062,1722015-1656,210,5942016-1759,976,3632017-1860,373,126

Infant Foods

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to reinstate the UK-wide Infant Feeding Survey.

Jackie Doyle-Price: There are no current plans to reinstate the Infant Feeding Survey.

National Child Measurement Programme

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will extend the National Child Measurement Programme to measure children (a) after birth, (b) before school and (c) during adolescence as recommended by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in their State of Child Health report published on 23 January 2019.

Steve Brine: There are no current plans to mandate additional weighing points in the National Child Measurement Programme.

Health Services: Children and Young People

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to ensure that every Sustainability and Transformation Partnership and Integrated Care System plan has a dedicated lead for children and young people at an executive or board level as recommended by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in their State of Child Health report published on 23 January 2019.

Stephen Hammond: NHS England worked closely with the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health during the development of the NHS Long Term Plan and will continue to work closely with the College on implementation. The NHS Long Term Plan sets out the ambition for local areas to design and implement models of care that are age appropriate, closer to home and bring together physical and mental health services. Sustainability and Transformation Partnerships will now produce local plans for how they will meet the commitments of the Plan. It is for health and care leaders and clinicians to decide how best to meet their plan objectives for their local populations. We would expect children and young people’s interests to be appropriately considered at both Sustainability and Transformation Partnership and Integrated Care System level.

Department for International Development

UN High Commissioner for Refugees: Niger

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department is providing to UNHCR for its work in Niger.

Harriett Baldwin: In 2018, the UK provided £600,000 to UNHCR to support and protect thousands of refugees in southeast Niger.   From 2019, the UK is providing £6 million to the World Food Programme, who will work with UNHCR, to provide six months of food and cash assistance to 75,000 refugees, internally displaced people and host communities in Niger and ensure that assistance is targeted to meet the specific needs of the most vulnerable men, women, boys and girls.

Department for International Development: Brexit

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress she has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The Department for International Development (DFID) has not laid any statutory instruments relating to EU Exit preparedness and is not planning on laying any statutory instruments related to EU Exit preparedness. These are not required for our departmental preparations which remain on track.

Leader of the House

Leader of the House of Commons: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Leader of the House, how many Sikhs are employed in her Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Andrea Leadsom: As set out in the answer from the Minister for Constitution, as of the 31st December 2018, 43 civil servants in the Cabinet Office were recorded as being Sikhs, as a religious group.

Ministry of Justice

HM Courts and Tribunals Service: ICT

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to tackle reported ongoing issues of poor connectivity and online disruption at HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Lucy Frazer: Holding answer received on 28 January 2019



I would like to apologise to those who were affected by the recent intermittent disruption, which was caused by an infrastructure failure in our supplier’s data centre. Services continued to operate, and court hearings continued, but I know how frustrating this was for anyone affected.We have been working continuously with our suppliers and connectivity has been restored across the Ministry of Justice estate. The Ministry of Justice Permanent Secretary and Chief Executive for HM Courts and Tribunals Service met with the Chief Executive of Atos UK & Ireland to understand what went wrong. We are continuing to carefully monitor the situation in case any new issues arise.I am very grateful to HM Courts and Tribunals staff who put in place contingency plans to make sure trials went ahead as planned and for staff who have worked tirelessly and around the clock to resolve these issues alongside our suppliers.

Debt Collection

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of current regulations on the conduct of bailiffs.

Lucy Frazer: Holding answer received on 30 January 2019



The Government is committed to ensuring that the enforcement of court judgments is effective whilst protecting debtors from aggressive behaviour from enforcement agents. We have launched a call for evidence on how enforcement agents operate as part of our review of the implementation of the enforcement agent provisions in the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007. The call for evidence closes on 17 February 2019. We shall consider the need for further reform of the powers and regulation of enforcement agents in the light of that evidence.

Tribunals

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has plans to hold tribunals in venues other than courtrooms.

Lucy Frazer: HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) already uses a range of non-HMCTS venues, such as community centres, town halls and council offices. dedicated tribunal venues and court buildings to hear First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) hearings. While there are no specific plans to alter the venues used for these hearings, HMCTS will continue to keep its tribunal estate under review to make sure future operational needs are met.

Prisoners: Mental Health Services

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners in (a) England and (b) England and Wales were transferred to a bed in an NHS mental health facility because they had (i) psychosis, (ii) schizophrenia or (iii) any other condition in each of the last five years.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the (a) average, (b) highest and (c) lowest number of weeks is which have passed between a doctor recommending transfer of a prisoner to a bed in a mental health facility and the prison’s eventual transfer of that prisoner in each year for which information is available.

Edward Argar: The total number of prisoners who have been transferred to hospital under sections 47 or 48 of the Mental Health Act 1983 in each of the last four years is set out below. The Ministry of Justice does not record the patients’ diagnoses: 201420152016 2017Total10611010980 936 The data are published annually on the gov.uk website under the Offender Management Statistics. The latest published data are up to December 2017. The figures for 2018 are currently subject t to the appropriate checks and validation before eventual publication later this year. It is not possible to provide a breakdown of these figures by geographical area; this information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The (a) average, (b) highest and (c) lowest number of weeks, which have passed between the Ministry of Justice receiving an application for transfer of a prisoner and the prisoner’s eventual admission to hospital, is set out in the tables below. Average number of weeks201420152016 20172018Total1.71.91.9 21.6  Highest number of weeks201420152016 20172018Total23.128.625.1 24.923  Lowest number of weeks201420152016 20172018Total000 00The time has been measured from the date at which the Ministry of Justice receives an application for transfer to the actual date of admission to hospital. It should be noted that two medical reports recommending transfer are required in each case and a bed must be available before the prisoner can transfer. In some instances, the Ministry of Justice will receive an incomplete application and so some of the time between receipt and admission will be spent awaiting both required medical reports, or other essential information. The Ministry of Justice has a target of 24 hours within which to provide a transfer warrant, once the assessments are complete and the two required medical reports and all other relevant information is received. This target is met in 95% of cases. Information on the length of time between the initial medical recommendation and the prisoner’s admission to hospital is not available in the format requested. Information is collected on the number of transfers, not the number of individual prisoners who are transferred. An individual prisoner may undergo more than one transfer in any given time period. This average time information is not published. The measure has been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing. We take the mental health of prisoners extremely seriously, which is why we have increased the support available to vulnerable offenders - especially during the first 24 hours in custody - and invested more in mental health awareness training for prison officers. But we recognise that more can be done and continue to work in partnership with HMPPS, DHSC, NHS England and Public Health England to improve the mental health of offenders at all points of the criminal justice system.

Court of Protection: Mental Capacity Act 2005

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance his Department has issued to the Court of Protection on the use of Section 49 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to ensure that (a) NHS bodies are not disproportionately affected and (b) clinicians are not called away from front-line services at short notice.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times the Court of Protection has asked NHS bodies for reports under Section 49 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 in each of the last five years.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which NHS bodies have been asked to provide reports under Section 49 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 in each of the last five years.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance his Department has given to NHS bodies on how to respond to requests for reports by the Court of Protection issued under Section 49 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

Edward Argar: When deciding the circumstances in some cases, section 49 reports are essential to ensure that the Court of Protection has all the necessary information to enable a decision to be made about an individual’s wishes and needs. During a hearing , the court may request further information including from social workers and clinicians in the form of a section 49 report. The Department has not issued any guidance on the use of section 49 by the independent judiciary but Practice Direction 14E, issued by the Court of Protection, provides detail on how to respond to requests for section 49 reports. No data is collected on either the number of requests to NHS bodies for section 49 reports or on which NHS bodies have been requested to provide reports.

Courts: Sales

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what has been the contribution to the public purse from the sale of courts in 2018.

Lucy Frazer: In 2018, £8.1 million was received from the sale of courts – every penny of which was reinvested into modernising the justice system so we can provide swifter and easier access to justice for all.The closure of any court is not taken lightly and only happens following full public consultation.

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether he plans to seek the inclusion of investor protection clauses in trade agreements that he transposes with (a) Canada and (b) Japan.

George Hollingbery: This Government is engaged in a technical exercise to replicate as far as possible the effects of current EU trade agreements. We are working with our Canadian partners to transition investment provisions and ensure they work in the context of our bilateral relationship. The EU-Japan EPA does not include investment protection provisions and has already been voted on in Parliament, and will come into force on the 1st February. The Department engages widely with businesses, civil society, and other stakeholders, and will continue to do so as it works with partners to seek continuity in current trade relationships.

Trade Agreements

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade whether he plans to consult publicly on the inclusion of investor protection clauses and (b) other investment provisions in trade agreements that he seeks to transpose with (i) Canada, (ii) Japan and (iii) other countries with which the EU has yet to ratify an agreement.

George Hollingbery: This Government is engaged in a technical exercise to replicate as far as possible the effects of current EU trade agreements. We are working with our Canadian partners to transition investment provisions and ensure they work in the context of our bilateral relationship. The EU-Japan EPA does not include investment protection provisions and has already been voted on in Parliament, and will come into force on the 1st February. The Department engages widely with businesses, civil society, and other stakeholders, and will continue to do so as it works with partners to seek continuity in current trade relationships.

Trade Agreements

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, which countries have assented to their existing free trade agreements with the UK as a result of UK membership of the EU being immediately rolled over once the UK leaves the EU.

George Hollingbery: Discussions with all partner countries have demonstrated a commitment to finding a pragmatic way to ensure continuity of our existing international agreements. As part of the Withdrawal Agreement, the EU agreed to notify its treaty partners that the UK be treated as a Member State for the purposes of EU international agreements during the Implementation Period (IP). This includes trade agreements. The Government continues to prepare for all eventualities, including a ‘no deal’ Brexit scenario, in the event of which we will seek to bring into force bilateral agreements from exit day (29 March 2019) or as soon as possible thereafter. We are making good progress and have signed agreements with partner countries, such as Chile, the Faroe Islands and Eastern and Southern African Economic Partnership Agreement states, with others soon to follow. When we reach agreement with other countries will depend on the progress of ongoing discussions, taking into account their assessment of the possibility of a no deal; their own political or parliamentary situation; resource constraints and other factors. The Government will continue to inform Parliament and the public when agreements are signed.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Labour Turnover

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to reduce the turnover of staff in his Department.

James Brokenshire: In July 2018 the Department introduced its new People Plan which covers the period 2018-20. The aim of the People Plan is to build a flexible and resilient workforce that will help us deliver our priorities. The Department is committed to supporting our people to maximise their potential and to experience varied and challenging career opportunities, including the opportunity to work in other parts of Government.Last year’s People Survey saw a further rise in staff engagement, identifying MHCLG as a ‘high performing’ organisation for the first time.

Social Rented Housing: Construction

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of social homes built in each year since 2012.

Kit Malthouse: The number of new build affordable homes completions by tenure, including social rent, can be found in Live Table 1009 in the link below:  https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply.

Social Rented Housing: Construction

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of social homes in new developments in each year since 2012.

Kit Malthouse: The Department published the number of new build affordable homes completions in live table 1009, which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-affordable-housing-supply.The Department also publishes the number of new build completions in live table 120, which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-net-supply-of-housing.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Jake Berry: The Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) is a continually evolving portfolio of the government’s most complex and high risk projects. Direct comparisons of the GMPP across years should therefore be treated with caution. Projects join and leave the GMPP throughout the year and it is therefore likely that a simple comparison across two time points will refer to different sets of projects.At the end of June 2016 (i.e. the end of the Quarter 1 reporting period for 2016-17), there were no officials in the Department for Communities and Local Government, my Department's predecessor, working on GMPP projects.GMPP data for December 2018 (Q3 2018/19) has not yet been cleared and finalised. At the end of September 2018 (i.e. the latest submitted data, at end of the Quarter 2 reporting period for 2018-19), there were no officials in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government working on GMPP projects.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) religious group.

Jake Berry: At 31 December 2018, 15 (1.3 per cent) civil servants in my Department were recorded as being Sikhs, as a religious group.This information is offered voluntarily by staff and as such we can only report on those that have chosen to provide details of their religious group.

Housing: Construction

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Planning reform: supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes, published in October 2018, if he will take steps to ensure the proposals from that consultation for expanding permitted development rights also support the Government’s commitment to better design as outlined in the terms of reference of the Building Better, Building Beautiful Commission.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Planning reform: supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes, published in October 2018, if he will make an estimate of the potential number of affordable homes for renting or buying that would be provided by an expansion of permitted development rights.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Planning reform: supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes, published in October 2018, what steps he is taking to ensure that an expansion of permitted development rights does not cause over-development in areas.

Mr Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Planning reform: supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes, published in October 2018, if he will take steps to ensure the potential expansion of permitted development rights does not lead to a loss of affordable housing to (a) rent and (b) buy.

Kit Malthouse: Our recent consultation, Planning Reform: Supporting the high street and increasing delivery of new homes set out a package of proposals to simplify and speed up the planning system, make effective use of land, help high streets to adapt and diversify and deliver more homes through new permitted development rights and changes to the Use Classes Order.We are currently considering all of the responses received to the consultation. Decisions will be taken in due course on how the consultation proposals will be taken forward in light of these.

Buildings: Insulation

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 January 2019 to Question 208362 on Buildings: Insulation, what assessment his Department has made of the compatibility with building regulations of the 1,421 non-aluminium composite material cladding samples submitted to the Building Research Establishment.

Kit Malthouse: It is the responsibility of the person undertaking building work to ensure that the requirements of Building Regulations are met. Samples of cladding panels were sent to the Building Research Establishment in response to the Government setting up its programme of screening tests of Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) panels. Those who sent in non-ACM samples were informed of this by the Building Research Establishment and that, as they were not ACM samples, these samples would not be subject to the screening test. The Department has made no assessment of these individual samples but has put in place with the Building Research Establishment a programme to research the fire performance of types of non-ACM cladding.

UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will ensure Metro Mayors in England will have a formal role in the consultation on the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Jake Berry: We intend to publish our consultation on the UK Shared Prosperity Fund shortly. During the consultation period Metro Mayors will have the opportunity to respond and we welcome your views and those of other Mayors. The Government will continue to engage with stakeholders across the UK during the consultation and thereafter to ensure the fund works for all places.

Retail Trade: Urban Areas

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many high street retail shops have closed in (a) the UK, (b) Hampshire and (c) Portsmouth since 2016.

Jake Berry: Closures since 2016:a) Great Britain- 148,291b) Hampshire- 1,637c) Portsmouth- 109 However we have also seen the following store openings since 2016:1.Great Britain- 134,7242.Hampshire- 1,4863.Portsmouth- 90

Retail Trade: Urban Areas

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department will take to prevent the closure of major high street retailers in (a) the UK, (b) Hampshire and (c) Portsmouth.

Jake Berry: The Government is determined to see our high streets thriving, both now and in the future.This is why we have announced “Our Plan for the High Street” at Autumn Budget 2018. This includes cutting business rates by a third for up to 90 per cent of eligible retail properties for two years, a High Streets Task Force to support local leadership, consultation on planning reform and a register of empty properties.To support the long-term adaptation of high streets, we are creating a £675 million Future High Streets Fund, which will help local areas make their high streets and town centres fit for the future.Across Portsmouth and the wider Hampshire area the Government has committed £182.92 million of Local Growth Deal funding through the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP). The LEP estimate that the Growth Deal will deliver 15,000 jobs; 1,000 new apprenticeships; 7,250 new homes; and 527,000 m2 of employment land.

Local Government Finance

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of regional trends in the level of funding changes experienced by local authorities since 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Rishi Sunak: Local authorities are funded from a mixture of central and local resources, including grants, retained business rates and council tax. Local authorities’ Revenue and Capital Account returns show the amounts from each source of income, and these are available online as follows:i) in the 'RS', ‘RSX’ and 'RG' data tables on the 'individual local authority data - outturn' web page for each year at www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-revenue-expenditure-and-financing, andii) in the 'COR-B and 'COR4' data tables on the 'individual local authority data' web page for each year at www.gov.uk/government/collections/local-authority-capital-expenditure-receipts-and-financing.

Housing: Regeneration

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of changing the legislation on compulsory purchase orders to allow such orders to be used in a cost efficient and timely manner by local authorities proposing housing regeneration schemes in areas with high rates of (a) absentee landlords, (b) poor housing quality and (c) low housing demand.

Kit Malthouse: Local authorities already have extensive compulsory purchase powers, which can be used to help facilitate a range of development and regeneration projects. However, they are intended as a last resort and there should always be a compelling case in the public interest to justify acquiring land and property compulsorily. The Government has recently introduced wide-ranging reforms to make the compulsory purchase process clearer, fairer and faster for all.

Housing: Regeneration

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will conduct an inquiry into the future of housing in former coalfield communities to develop a bespoke housing policy for constituencies experiencing (a) poor housing quality and (b) low housing demand.

Kit Malthouse: Government wants to help people who experience problems with their housing and help them feel empowered to challenge when things go wrong. Last week’s announcement of a new Housing Complaints Resolution Service will improve access to redress for residents living in substandard accommodation – regardless of tenure.   It is the responsibility of local authorities through the planning system, with regard to the National Planning Policy Framework, to determine the appropriate level and types of housing in their area.   Our estate regeneration national strategy emphasises the crucial leadership role of local authorities and the importance of working in partnership with local residents to drive change.   I look forward to meeting with the honourable member to discuss housing in former coalfield communities.

Housing: Design

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his Answer of 11 January 2019 to Question 206212, what plans he has to review the effect on design quality of permitted development for office to residential conversions.

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his Answer dated 11 January 2019 to Question 206212, whether additional resources will be made available to local authorities to produce and enforce local design codes.

Kit Malthouse: The revised National Planning Policy Framework promotes the use of local design codes to deliver quality development that reflects local character. My Department is supporting Design Network in a series of engagements with local authority officers and councillors around the country to determine the barriers to delivering quality in their areas. The permitted development right for office to residential conversions allows change of use but not external works. Nationally, over 42,000 homes were delivered under the right in the three years to March 2018. All homes delivered through the right are required to meet Building Regulations, including fire safety.

Community Assets: Ownership

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to page 54 of the Civil Society Strategy published in August 2018, what progress his Department has made on issuing revised guidance to help communities take ownership of local assets.

Jake Berry: The Department is currently consulting with civil society partners on the development of a Community Guide to Action and hope to be able to publish this in the summer. This is in addition to supporting the online platform “My Community” to provide detailed advice to voluntary and community groups interested in taking assets into community ownership and “Keep It In The Community” to ensure that more community groups are able to identify local assets of community value.Organisations such as Sport England, Heritage Lottery Fund, and Power to Change also provide comprehensive and bespoke advice, ensuring community groups have access to the knowledge and networks which encourage the community ownership of assets.

Housing: Design

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2019 to Question 206212, what steps he is planning to take to prevent adverse effects on design from any expansion of permitted development to cover demolition and rebuilding.

Kit Malthouse: Our recent consultation, “Planning Reform: Supporting the high street and increasing the delivery of new homes” sought views on the feasibility of a permitted development right to allow for the demolition of commercial buildings and replacement build as residential, while securing high quality development consistent with national policy. We are currently considering all the responses received to the consultation. Decisions will be taken in due course on how the proposals will be take forward.

Private Rented Housing: Evictions

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if his Department will bring forward legislative proposals to prohibit no-fault evictions.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government is committed to protecting the rights of tenants and giving them more security. We recently consulted on ways to overcome the barriers to landlords offering longer, more secure tenancies in the private rented sector.We are considering responses to the consultation and will be bringing forward proposals that make the system work for both tenants and landlords. We will provide more information on next steps shortly.

Future High Streets Fund

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether more than one bid can be submitted from each local authority area to the Future High Street Fund.

Jake Berry: Further information on the eligibility criteria for the fund will be included in supplementary guidance for local authorities which shall be published in due course.

Future High Streets Fund

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether Business Improvement Districts can submit bids to the Future High Street Fund.

Jake Berry: We are inviting bids from unitary authorities, metropolitan districts, London boroughs and, where there is a two-tier system, from district councils, in England. We are only accepting bids from local authorities, given their control of the strategic levers to develop the types of projects that will meet the objectives of the Fund. However, we encourage councils to work closely with stakeholders including Business Improvement Districts. Further information on the fund, including details of the nature of stakeholder support that we expect bidding authorities to demonstrate in their applications, can be found in the prospectus published online.

Taxis: Licensing

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions his Department has had with the Department for Transport on updating taxi and PHV regulation.

Kit Malthouse: My officials have had several discussions with officials from the Department for Transport on updating taxi and PHV regulation. Based on those discussions, I am confident that the Department for Transport’s proposals will take us in the right direction on this difficult issue.

Ministry of Defence

Clyde Naval Base: Radiation Exposure

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what instrument is used to check for radioactive contamination on personnel as they leave the reactor compartment in the reactor compartment tunnel at HM Naval Base Clyde Faslane.

Stuart Andrew: All staff exiting controlled radiation areas at HM Naval Base Clyde are monitored and controlled in accordance with approved written procedures. Our safety management arrangements, through the use of portable or installed monitors, are compliant with the Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017. The instrumentation used will depend a number of factors, including the nature of the work and the type of contamination being measured.

Sahel: Chinook Helicopters

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) planned length of deployment and (b) end of operation date is of RAF Chinooks to support French and European forces in the Sahel region.

Mark Lancaster: At the UK-France Sandhurst Summit in 2018 it was agreed that the UK would deploy RAF CH-47s for 18 months in support for Operation BARKHANE. This deployment is due to end in December 2019.

European Defence Agency

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the Government’s policy is on pursuing an Administrative Arrangement with the European Defence Agency.

Stuart Andrew: It is important that UK and European industry can continue to work together to deliver the capabilities we need to keep us safe. The European Defence Agency (EDA) has a central coordinating role in the development of the EU's defence capabilities. As outlined in the Political Declaration, the UK will seek an Administrative Arrangement with the EDA that would enable us to participate in EDA projects and programmes where it is of mutual benefit, to further our defence cooperation opportunities.

Defence: Civilians

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his December 2018 report on the Modernising Defence Programme, what the (a) timescale and (b) plans are for implementing the international civilian defence cadre; and if he will make a statement.

Gavin Williamson: Building International Capability for Defence is a priority. As mentioned in the Modernising Defence Programme report Mobilising, Modernising and Transforming Defence, part of our approach is the creation of an International Civilian Defence Cadre. Planning for this is currently under way and the intent is to create a dedicated support team due to stand-up later this year.

Military Aircraft: Procurement

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential for hypersonic flight to be included in the design of the next generation fighter jet.

Stuart Andrew: The next generation acquisition programme will deliver the capability required when Typhoon leaves RAF service. As part of the concept phase, a variety of concepts (as well as combinations thereof) to deliver the required capability will be considered. These will include hypersonic weapon concepts as part of the next generation combat air system.

Defence Equipment: Auctions

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that sensitive military technologies in use by the armed forces cannot be purchased on the open market from UK-based auctioneers; and whether he plans to undertake a review to prevent such situations occurring again.

Nic Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to undertake an assessment of the potential effect on the capabilities of the armed forces of sensitive military technologies in use by those forces being sold at auction to hostile agents; and if he will make a statement.

Stuart Andrew: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes the safety and security of military equipment extremely seriously. Contractors who process, store and dispose of such equipment are subject to a strict ongoing security assurance programme, which includes regular reviews and assessments against Government policy. The MOD will not hesitate to take appropriate action in order to protect Armed Forces capability, including retrieving equipment where there is a suspected breach.

Antiship Missiles

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to extend the Harpoon missile's service beyond 2023.

Stuart Andrew: The Royal Navy has extended the service life of Harpoon beyond 2018 and continues to investigate candidate solutions for a replacement system. It is too early to comment on what these might be. We do not discuss the particular out of service dates for weapons systems as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Armed Forces: Training

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has concluded its assessment of offers to conduct cold weather training from (a) Canada, (b) Finland and (c) Iceland; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: We recognise the importance of having forces that are capable of operating in harsh environments and welcome offers from our allies and partners to conduct cold weather training. The Army will be sending observers to Canada for the 2019 Op NANOOK cold weather training exercise, and we are assessing cold weather training opportunities in Finland. We will be deploying RAF Typhoons to Iceland later this year as part of the NATO Air Policing mission. Future provision of cold weather training is being considered in the Arctic Strategy which we plan to publish this spring.

Ministry of Defence: Brexit

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress he has made in laying Statutory Instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence laid The Defence and Security Public Contracts (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 on 13 December 2018. It is currently our only planned EU Exit Statutory Instrument.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit: Housing

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2018 to Question 196906 on Universal Credit: Housing, whether she has made an assessment of the potential effect on levels of poverty among universal credit claimants of not amending universal credit regulations to allow the housing cost element for renters to be calculated for a 53-week year in 2019-20; and if she will make a statement.

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 3 December 2018 to Question 196906, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of not adjusting universal credit regulations to allow the housing cost element for renters to be calculated for a 53 week year in 2019-20 on the potential increase in the amount of claimants' debt.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department has looked into this issue again and has concluded that neither tenants or landlords suffer financial disadvantage in 53 weekly payment years. Universal Credit simplifies the welfare system for working age claimants and is paid on a monthly cycle to reflect the fact that the vast majority of people receive their wages monthly. Many social landlords still expect their tenants to pay rent on a weekly basis, a practice based upon a time when both wages and benefits were paid weekly.This perceived issue is caused by the impossibility of accurately aligning weekly and monthly payment cycles at all points in time. By selecting a random period, it is possible to show a theoretical shortfall which does not exist in practice. Having 53 rent payment days does not mean having a higher rental liability over the course of the year; some of the days covered by the final payment will relate to the next year because a year never contains 53 full weeks. The effect of this is that, over the course of the next housing association rental year, a tenant’s UC payments will accurately reflect their liability, irrespective of the 53 payment weeks.

Work Capability Assessments: Mental Illness

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many work capability assessments have included intervention from mental function champions in the last year.

Sarah Newton: The information requested is not held.

Social Security Benefits: Mental Illness

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department takes to assess the effectiveness of mental health champions in (a) personal independence payment and (b) work capability assessments.

Sarah Newton: The Department outsourced the PIP and ESA assessments to providers and the Mental Health Function Champion (MHFC) role is delivered through them. MHFCs are part of a package of resources available to Health Professionals to help them assess claimants with Mental Health needs. The Department monitors all elements of the provider’s performance including the quality of assessments, which are assessed through an independent audit, with feedback provided to the provider.

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many personal independence payment assessments carried out by (a) Atos Healthcare and (b) Capita Business Services have been subject to review by client relations medical advisors in the past year as a result of complaints.

Sarah Newton: The information requested is not held.

Work Capability Assessments

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many work capability assessments carried out by Maximus have been subject to review by customer relations medical advisors in the last year as a result of complaints.

Sarah Newton: Customer Relations Medical Advisors do not record the number of cases that are reviewed.

Industrial Health and Safety

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Health and Safety Executive is taking to protect outdoor workers from the potential ill-health effects of long-term exposure to air pollution.

Sarah Newton: The Health and Safety Executive is the independent regulator for work-related health and safety in Great Britain; it does not regulate environmental exposures. In the UK, responsibility for meeting air quality limit values is devolved to the national administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has responsibility for meeting the limit values in England and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) co-ordinates assessment and air quality plans for the UK as a whole.

Industrial Health and Safety

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what research the Health and Safety Executive is undertaking to better understand the effect of polluted air on the health of outdoor workers.

Sarah Newton: The Health and Safety Executive is not currently undertaking any research to better understand the effect of polluted air on the health of outdoor workers. Defra and the Devolved Administrations carry out air quality modelling both to provide information on concentrations of pollutants in places where they do not monitor and to predict concentrations under different situations, for example in the future or as a result of possible new policies.The UK Stratospheric Ozone and UV monitoring programme funded by Defra and the Devolved Administrations provides ozone and UV background information and includes a map of the ozone and UV monitoring stations across the UK.Defra and the Devolved Administrations also support a number of research networks that gather data about certain air pollutants.

Industrial Health and Safety

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many proactive inspections were carried out by the Health and Safety Executive in each of the last 10 years.

Sarah Newton: The number of proactive inspections carried out by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in each of the last 10 years is as follows: Year (a)Number of proactive inspections2009/10Not available2010/11Not available2011/12c.21,7002012/13c.22,2402013/14c.23,4702014/15c.20,2002015/16c.18,0002016/17c.20,0002017/18c.20,0002018/19 (b)Not yet availableFigures on the numbers of inspections were not part of HSE’s targets or performance measures prior to 2011/12 and were not collated.(a) Years commencing 1st April(b) Year to date

Health and Safety Executive: Staff

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many frontline inspectors the Health and Safety Executive has employed in each of the last 10 years.

Sarah Newton: The number of frontline inspectors the Health and Safety Executive has employed in each of the last 10 years are as follows: HSE (including ONR)2008/092009/102010/112011/122012/131,4631,4951,4501,4321,367 HSE (excluding ONR)2013/142014/152015/162016/172017/181,0511,0381,037988978 HSE inspector numbers are as per the respective Annual Report and Accounts. The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) became an independent statutory public corporation on 1 April 2014 and are excluded from 2013/14 onwards.

Department for Work and Pensions: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in her Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Justin Tomlinson: The Government Major Project’s Portfolio (GMPP) is a continually evolving portfolio of the government’s most complex and high risk projects. Direct comparisons of the GMPP across years should therefore be treated with caution. Projects join and leave the GMPP throughout the year and it is therefore likely that a simple comparison across two time points will refer to different sets of projects. At the end of June 2016, 845 full time equivalents Civil Servant Project Delivery Professionals were working on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in the Department for Work and Pensions. At the end of December 2018, 675 full time equivalents Civil Servant Project Delivery Professionals were working on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in the Department for Work and Pensions. This data refers to public sector employees, defined as those who are directly in the employment of the Civil or Crown Service, local government or Arms’ Length Body at the relevant snapshot date, including seconded members of staff who join the team as Civil, Crown or Public servants. The data supplied covers Project Delivery Professionals staff paid for from cost centres associated with the GMPP programmes at the dates specified. Other public sector employees will be involved in the delivery of the programmes in some capacity.

Universal Credit: Support for Mortgage Interest

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2019 to Question 207224 on Universal Credit: Support for Mortgage Interest, how much Support for Mortgage Interest has been (a) paid, (b) recouped and (c) left outstanding since April 2018.

Justin Tomlinson: Since April 2018 to January 2019, £21 million has been paid for Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) loans. The amount of loans recouped and outstanding can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Social Security Benefits: Overpayments

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on the living standards of benefit claimants of the rate at which repayments of overpayments are repaid to her Department.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) balances a requirement to protect tax payer’s money with a duty to ensure that claimants are not placed in undue hardship by excessive deductions from their benefit. For this reason, the maximum deduction rates that can be applied to an on-going benefit award for the recovery of an overpayment are set out in legislation. Different deduction rates will be applied in different circumstances, with the highest rate only being applicable where an overpayment has been classified as fraud. DWP administers benefits to approximately 20 million people with a wide variety of individual circumstances so it is difficult to make a general assessment on living standards. Therefore, we apply any considerations of this type at an individual level. If a person states they cannot afford the proposed rate of recovery, they are asked to provide details of their income and expenditure. Their individual circumstances will then be taken into account and a temporary reduction in the rate of repayment may be agreed. In exceptional circumstances, a temporary suspension of recovery may be appropriate.

Pensions: Judicial Review

Chris Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the terms of reference are for the High Court's judicial review into the implementation of the Pension Act 1995 and Pension Act 2011.

Guy Opperman: Several people have brought a challenge in the High Court in relation to changes to State Pension age on a number of different grounds. On 30th November 2018, the High Court ruled that a case on these matters would go to a full hearing on all grounds. The case is listed to be heard in the Divisional Court on 5th and 6th June 2019. The basis of the claim is available from the High Court. The DWP are unable to comment on live litigation. This approach is consistent with all previous governments approach to live litigation.

Pension Credit: Wales

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of pension credit claimants in (a) Cardiff South and Penarth, (b) the Vale of Glamorgan and (c) Wales who have a partner of working age and will be affected by forthcoming changes to the rules on pension credit.

Guy Opperman: The changes the government announced on January 14 will ensure that same work incentives will apply to the younger partner as apply to other people of the same age and that taxpayer support is directed to where it is needed most. The change will not affect mixed age couples who are entitled to Pension Credit and/or pension age Housing Benefit immediately before May 15, unless their entitlement to both those benefits subsequently ends. The number of future mixed age couples that are estimated to be affected by the forthcoming changes is not available.

Universal Credit: Self-employed

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Office of Budget Responsibility’s Welfare Trends report published in January 2018, what the Government’s updated estimate is of the effect on the public purse of applying the minimum income floor to self-employed people claiming universal credit in (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20, (c) 2020-21, (d) 2021-22 and (e) 2022-23.

Alok Sharma: This data is currently going through quality assurance clearance procedures in line with the National Statistics and Official Statistics publication standard.

Access to Work Programme

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2018 to Question 193360 on Access to Work Programme, what proportion of individuals who report their main health condition as problems with their (a) hands or arms, (b) back or neck and (c) legs or feet did not receive a payment for the Access to Work element approved in 2016-17 within 12 months of approval.

Sarah Newton: The table below shows the proportion of individuals who had any Access to Work element approved in 2016/17 but to whom no payment was made within 12 months, for the requested primary medical conditions. Primary medical conditionThe number of people who had any Access to Work Element approved in 2016/17, by primary medical conditionProportion of individuals for whom no payment was made for any Access to Work element approved in 2016/17 within 12 months of approval, by primary medical conditionArms or hands1,10063%Legs or feet1,49035%Back or neck3,26065% We do not routinely collect data on the reasons why payments may not have been made, however we did recently publish independent qualitative research, conducted with a small sample of Access to Work recipients, which provides some insight into why some recipients whose applications are approved do not take up payment; reasons included employers accepting the full costs and recipients leaving their jobs between applying and being granted Access to Work. In a minority of cases, the Access to Work application process or recommendations received were cited as the reason for deciding not to take up the provision. This research can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/access-to-work-research-review As soon as an application for support is received, Access to Work actively engages with both the applicant and their employer. Many organisations welcome the support offered by the scheme but, if necessary, Access to Work advisers will work with employers to obtain their buy in to the need for support, ‘sell’ the benefits of the requested support and facilitate timely implementation.We’re also using Disability Confident to raise employers’ awareness of how best to support their disabled employees, as well as integrating Access to Work into Disability Confident communications.

Department for Work and Pensions: Universal Credit

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information her Department holds on how many employees within her Department and its executive agencies (a) are currently and (b) will be subject in the next 12 months to in-work conditionality under universal credit.

Alok Sharma: Employees claiming Universal Credit have no obligation to inform DWP they are receiving benefits.Universal Credit provides us with the opportunity, for the first time, to support people to earn more so they can progress in their career. We are developing our understanding of what works to support people to progress through a programme of research and analysis, tests and trials. Outside of the In-work Progression Randomised Controlled Trial, which has now finished, claimants who are in work with earnings above the Administrative Earnings Threshold are not currently expected to undertake any mandatory activity.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Plastics

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government plans to phase-out unnecessary single-use plastic.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the Government's progress on reducing plastic pollution.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government plans to bring forward legislative proposals to reduce levels of plastic pollution.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government published the Resources and Waste Strategy in December last year which sets out our plans to reduce plastic pollution. This builds on the commitment in the 25 Year Environment Plan to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste.Domestically we have made good progress: from banning microbeads in rinse-off personal care products and removing 15.6 billion plastic bags from circulation with our 5p charge to strengthening the protection of our marine areas. We have already consulted on banning plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds and are currently consulting on extending the carrier bag charge. We will shortly consult on reforming existing packaging waste regulation, introducing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers and increasing consistency in the recycling system. Legislative proposals will be developed taking account of the consultation responses. The Government will continue to review the latest evidence on problematic products and materials to take a systematic approach to reducing the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products.The 25 Year Environment Plan includes a commitment to remove all single-use consumer plastics from central Government offices and the Resources and Waste Strategy has confirmed that the Government will do this by 2020. A number of Departments, including Defra, have already taken steps to eliminate single-use consumer plastics from their operations.The Government is also committed to the plastics tax announced by the Chancellor.

Agriculture: Metaldehyde

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations he has received on the use of metaldehyde for agricultural purposes.

George Eustice: The decision to restrict authorisations arose from a routine review of safety data carried out by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the UK Expert Committee on Pesticides under pesticides legislation. The review considered the available scientific information, including new studies commissioned by authorisation holders, and concluded that the risks to birds and mammals were unacceptable. The decision was communicated to the authorisation holders by HSE as the UK regulator. Defra issued a press release outlining the reasons for the decision and also alerted water companies that have an interest in limiting metaldehyde emissions to water. Defra and HSE have had representations from stakeholders on the decision itself, some of which were supportive while others raised concerns. We have also had representations about the phase out period. We are in the process of replying to these representations.

Agriculture: Metaldehyde

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which EU countries have banned the use of metaldehyde for agricultural purposes.

George Eustice: The Netherlands has also prohibited outdoor use of metaldehyde. Denmark, Finland and Sweden did not agree with the approval of metaldehyde and have not authorised its use in agriculture.

Agriculture: Metaldehyde

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the (a) potential increase and (b) associated risks in the use of ferric phosphates as a replacement for metaldehyde in farming.

George Eustice: The use of ferric phosphate for controlling slugs has increased in recent years. Use is likely to increase further as metaldehyde will no longer be permitted for outdoor use after 30 June 2020. Ferric phosphate is authorised for use as a pesticide and the risk assessment carried out demonstrates that it will not harm people or carry unacceptable risks to the environment. In particular, it does not carry the risks to birds and mammals that have led to the decision to remove the authorisation of metaldehyde. The assessment also shows that ferric phosphate is effective in controlling slugs.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

George Eustice: At the 31st December 2018, 21 civil servants in my Department were recorded as being Sikhs, as a religious group.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

George Eustice: Defra provides quarterly data to The Infrastructure and Projects Authority on its Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP) projects including the full time equivalent (FTE) number of public servants and contractors working on those projects.Defra had four projects in the GMPP in 2016. These included TEAM2100, Thames Tideway Tunnel and CAP Delivery, which are no longer part of the GMPP. The only Defra project remaining on the portfolio is UnITy.Data for Q3 (December) 2018 is not yet available so we have provided Q2 (September) data instead.Based on information available we can confirm the following figures:Q2 (September) 2016: 93.9 public sector FTE and 186.2 external contractor FTE working across the four projects making a total of 280.1 FTE.Q2 (September) 2018: 5.6 public sector FTE and 61 external contractor FTE working on UnITy making a total of 66.6 FTE.These figures do not include public sector staff from outside core project teams.

Slaughterhouses: Animal Welfare

Thelma Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps are being taken to develop and enforce clear standards in the humane slaughter of animals in UK abattoirs.

David Rutley: The Government cares highly about the welfare of animals and this includes their welfare at the point of slaughter. The Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015 (WATOK) implements and enforces Council Regulation 1099/2009 (EU Regulation) on the protection of animals at time of killing as well as maintaining our stricter national rules that provide greater welfare protection than the EU Regulation.These requirements are monitored and enforced in slaughterhouses in England by Official Veterinarians (OVs) of the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to ensure that animals are spared avoidable pain, suffering or distress. The FSA operates a zero tolerance policy towards animal cruelty and OVs take a prompt and proportionate approach to enforcement action where breaches are identified.The Government has delivered on the manifesto commitment to make CCTV recording in slaughterhouses mandatory. This legislation came into force last year and requires slaughterhouse operators to install and operate a CCTV system in their premises that provides a clear and complete view of all areas where live animals are present. This legislation followed several well publicised cases of animal abuse in slaughterhouses. As an important complement to existing physical observation, CCTV should help maintain and improve animal welfare standards in all slaughterhouses and provide assurance to consumers that this is the case.

Pesticides

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish a timetable for the release of the Government's (a) draft revised National Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides and (b) public consultation on that draft.

George Eustice: We have reviewed the National Action Plan for the sustainable use of pesticides and propose to consult on the future of pesticides policy later in 2019.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Brexit

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) procurement processes his Department has run for contracts for after the UK leaves the EU since 23 June 2016 and (b) bids his Department has received from suppliers for services for after the UK has left the EU.

David Rutley: There have been 33 procurement processes run for contracts. Procurement processes for contracts are undertaken via open OJEU competition or further competition through multi-supplier Government frameworks. The information requested on the number of bids received from suppliers is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur disproportionate costs.

Non-native Species

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of making wildlife rescue exempt from the Invasive Alien Species Order 2019 in order to protect grey squirrels and muntjac deer.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The rescue of wildlife will not be illegal under the Order, however the re-release of listed invasive species that have been taken from the wild will not be permitted. Grey squirrel and muntjac may be kept till the end of their natural lives by rescue centres, under licence.Neither grey squirrel nor muntjac deer are protected in the UK and both are highly invasive species which cause significant impacts on domestic ecosystems and protected species. Grey squirrels also have a negative impact on our forestry.Risk assessments for both species have been carried out under the EU Regulation on Invasive Alien Species 2014. For muntjac deer, the EU adopted the UK’s risk assessment for this species, which concluded it has the potential to cause ‘major’ impacts. For the grey squirrel, it was concluded that this species was ‘high’ risk with the potential to cause major impacts.The UK is committed to reducing the impacts of invasive non-native species within our borders. The Invasive Aliens Species (enforcement and permitting) Order 2019 is part of fulfilling these commitments, as laid out by the Government’s 25 year environment plan. The Order also fulfils our obligations under the EU regulation to manage our widespread invasive non-native species.

Non-native Species

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the operation of the Invasive Alien Species Order 2019 will require animal rescue centres to kill healthy animals.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: No. Animal rescue centres are not required to kill healthy animals. Healthy animals taken from the wild may be kept until the end of their natural lives, under licence, provided that they are prevented from breeding or escape. Centres may not, however, re-release those animals; this is to prevent them from further adding to the wild population.

Non-native Species

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the implementation of the Invasive Alien Species Order 2019 on the numbers of (a) grey squirrels and (b) muntjac deer.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: No direct assessment has been carried out. The Government takes biosecurity extremely seriously and aims to reduce the impacts of invasive non-native species on our natural environment, the economy and human health. As part of this, the Government works closely with the UK Squirrel Accord and forestry interests to implement the grey squirrel action plan for England and provides funding to the Animal and Plant Health Agency to explore the potential for developing a fertility control method for grey squirrels. We have made a commitment that our exit from the EU will not to erode protections for the environment. We therefore intend to uphold our commitment to the implementation of the EU Invasive Alien Species Regulation 2014 which requires us to manage the populations of widespread species such as grey squirrel and muntjac deer.

Farms: Inspections

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many FTE Farm Inspectors have been employed in each region in each of the last five years figures are available.

George Eustice: Defra and its agencies carry out farm inspections for a wide range of reasons including Animal Inspections, Disease Inspections, Environmental Inspections, Facility Inspections, Funding Scheme Inspections and Veterinary Medicine Inspections. These inspections form part of wider roles within each agency and we are therefore unable to provide the data as requested. These are the different kinds of farm inspections according to Gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/farming-inspections.

Farms: Pollution Control

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to reduce diffuse pollution from farms to improve water quality.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Farming is a significant source of environmental pollution to water. The Government has long term strategies in place to address this. Leaving the EU provides the opportunity to change the way in which we support farmers to enhance the environment. The new Environmental Land Management system, underpinned by natural capital principles, will deliver many of the key outcomes set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan, including clean and plentiful water. River Basin Management Plans and the Environment Agency’s monitoring give a comprehensive assessment of water and ecological quality and the impact of agriculture. The Catchment Sensitive Farming programme works alongside Countryside Stewardship and water company catchment programmes to advise farmers on ways to reduce pollutant loadings and other sustainable water management objectives. As part of our 25 Year Environment Plan commitments we introduced the Farming Rules for Water[1] in England in April 2018 to prevent and reduce diffuse pollution from agriculture. The rules are outcome focused and require farmers to manage their land and farming activities in ways which keep soil on the land, match nutrients to crop, and soil needs, and keep livestock fertilisers and manures out of the water. Other water and agriculture regulations are being reviewed as part of work to improve water quality and streamline the regulatory baseline for agriculture. Findings and evidence from the Environment Audit Committee’s report [UK progress on Reducing Nitrate Pollution] and the Dame Glenys Stacey Review, together with commitments in the Clean Air Strategy and evidence from the implementation of the Farming Rules for Water, will be considered by that review to enable a more integrated approach to reducing pollution from agriculture in future.[1] The Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution (England) Regulations 2018

Farmers: Government Assistance

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to support farmers after the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: We have pledged to continue to commit the same cash total in funds for farm support until the end of this Parliament. In England we are planning an ambitious new system based on “public money for public goods”. A seven year transition period will make sure there is a gradual transition from the current system to the new. It will be for a future Northern Ireland Executive to determine its own policy. However, in the absence of an Assembly, DAERA’s approach to the Bill is to maintain the status quo and preserve flexibility for a future Executive to modify legacy CAP schemes.

Polar Regions and Seas and Oceans: Waste

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what international representations are being made to reduce waste in the oceans in international waters and the Polar Regions.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK is committed to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 14 – preventing and significantly reducing marine pollution of all kinds. Marine litter is a global issue affecting every region of the world’s oceans and therefore needs global action. To achieve this goal we are working through a number of organisations and multilateral organisations.We played a leading role within the G7 to drive ambitious action under the Ocean Plastics Charter in 2018 which has secured support from 16 governments and 20 businesses and organisations.In April 2018 the Prime Minister launched the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, an action group under the Commonwealth Blue Charter that takes action on marine plastic pollution. Led by the UK and Vanuatu, 24 Commonwealth country members of the CCOA have pledged ambitious action to tackle plastic pollution. The CCOA is supported by a package of UK aid of up to £66.4m, which will provide technical assistance and boost much needed research and innovation to stop plastic entering the marine environment in the first place.In the Polar Regions, the UK has maintained strong involvement in finalising the environmental aspects of the Polar Code, through the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and Protection of the Marine Environment Working Group (PAME). The Polar Code includes mandatory measures covering pollution prevention from various wastes. The dumping of plastic waste in Antarctica is prohibited and UK fishing operators are leading action to reduce plastic pollution released into Antarctic waters.

Pollution: Measurement

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural affairs, what methods of measuring emissions of (a) PM0.1 and (b) PM1 his Department is using.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government makes an annual assessment of the emissions of PM0.1 (also known as ultrafine particles) and PM1, which is published as part of the National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory (http://naei.beis.gov.uk/). The Inventory applies emission factors to activity data collected through the year, to estimate the total emissions.Defra is continually working to build the evidence base for PM0.1, and its independent Air Quality Expert Group published a report on this subject on 27 July 2018 - ‘Ultrafine Particles (UFP) in the UK’.

Pâté de Foie Gras: Imports

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to ban foie gras imports after the UK leaves the EU.

David Rutley: We have some of the highest standards of animal welfare and the production of foie gras by force feeding is banned in the UK as it is incompatible with our domestic legislation. Once we leave the European Union, there will be an opportunity to consider whether the UK can adopt a different approach to foie gras imports and sales in the UK.

Invasive Non-native Species (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the draft Invasive Non-native Species (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (a) makes policy changes, (b) will lead to a change in operational delivery, (c) will impose additional costs on (i) business, (ii) individuals, or (iii) the public sector, (d) makes changes to primary legislation, (e) will result in any additional environmental impacts compared with the legislation being amended or replaced, and (f) is only required in the event the UK leaves the EU with no deal.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Invasive Non-native Species (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 were considered by the Delegated Legislation Committee on 29 January. a) No.b) No.c) i) No.ii) Noiii) The costs on the public sector will be low.d) A minor amendment is made to Section 11 of the Destructive Imported Animals Act 1932.e) No.f) No. This instrument is needed when the UK leaves the EU: it will be deferred to the end of an implementation period if no longer needed on 29 March 2019.

Fisheries (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the draft Fisheries (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (a) makes policy changes, (b) will lead to a change in operational delivery, (c) will impose additional costs on (i) business, (ii) individuals, or (iii) the public sector, (d) makes changes to primary legislation, (e) will result in any additional environmental impacts compared with the legislation being amended or replaced, and (f) is only required in the event the UK leaves the EU with no deal.

George Eustice: The published Explanatory Memorandum to this statutory instrument provides the information requested. To summarise, the instrument only contains simple and technical changes to pieces of domestic fisheries legislation to ensure they operate correctly after EU withdrawal. This means that it: (a) Does not make changes to policy; (b) Will not lead to a change in operational delivery; (c) Will not impose any additional costs (as there are no changes to what businesses, individuals or the public sector will have to do under the regulations); (d) Makes minor technical corrections to the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967, the Fisheries Act 1981 and the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009, in order to give effect to EU measures forming part of the CFP; and (e) Will not result in any additional environmental impacts. This statutory instrument will be required on EU withdrawal, but if there is an implementation period we expect to defer, revoke or amend the SI in time for the end of that period.

Pesticides

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the National Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides will include a strategy for (a) minimising overall pesticide use and (b) supporting the wider use of integrated pest management.

George Eustice: The Government intends to continue to develop its approach to pesticides, and we propose to consult on the future of pesticides policy later in 2019. Both the 25 Year Environment Plan and the National Action Plan emphasise the importance of Integrated Pest Management. This means not only that pesticides are used well, but that pesticide use is minimised and the uptake of alternatives is strongly encouraged.

Litter

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much funding his Department has allocated directly to (a) Keep Britain Tidy and (b) other anti-litter initiatives in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The following table sets out the grant funding allocated to Keep Britain Tidy from 2010 to 2015: YearGrant 2010-11£4.75 million2011-12£4 million2012-13£3.5 million2013-14£2.25 million2014-15£0.5 million After 2015, no funding was specifically allocated to Keep Britain Tidy, but it has successfully bid for a number of litter-related contracts:YearProjectContract value 2015-16Analysis of Local Environment Quality Survey for England data 2014-15£29,9862017-18Survey of roadside litter on trunk roads other than motorways£79,0002018-19Economic valuation of the non-market benefits of dealing with specific types of litter that a Deposit Return Scheme in England would help to overcome£41,525 Keep Britain Tidy was also awarded the following grant funding towards the delivery of national clear-up days in 2015-18:YearGrant 2015 (Community Clear-Up Day)£9,5002016 (Clean for the Queen)£9,5002017 (Great British Spring Clean)£10,000 In 2017, we also launched the £450,000 Litter Innovation Fund (jointly funded by Defra and the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government), to pilot, implement and evaluate small scale local research projects that could be replicated more widely. The Fund was open to applications from councils, community groups, campaign groups and small/medium-sized enterprises. A total of £122,449 was awarded to 13 projects in the first round, including 4 awards to Keep Britain Tidy, totaling £39,717. Full details of all the first-round awards are available online at:http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/litter-innovation-fundDefra has spent the following amounts on the development of the national anti-littering campaign (none of this funding was paid to Keep Britain Tidy).YearPurposeAmount2016-2017Initial scoping and research£15,8682017-2018Development of campaign and partnership strategy and stakeholder research, as well as testing and development of a campaign identify£124,4122018-2019Campaign branding, creative assets and launch.£50,000 Since 2015, Defra has also provided £5,000 per year to the Marine Conservation Society to carry out beach cleaning at priority beaches.No funding has been allocated to other anti-litter initiatives.

Exhaust Emissions: Diesel Vehicles

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has plans to provide financial assistance to individuals from low-income households to enable them to retrofit their older diesel vehicles to reduce emissions of nitrogen dioxide.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: There are currently no technologies available on the market to cost effectively retrofit diesel cars. Whilst the Government is taking steps to incentivise the development of new retrofit technologies, this is currently not a viable solution for cars in the short term.

Air Pollution

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 January 2019 to Question 206818 on Air Pollution, which of the eight local authority groupings that have submitted air quality plans to his Department have submitted (a) a final plan and (b) an outline business case.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: (a) Five local authority groupings have provided a final plan in the form of an Outline Business Case, these are: Blackwater Valley (Rushmoor Borough Council, Guildford Borough Council and Surrey heath Borough Council working together); Fareham Borough Council; Middlesbrough Borough Council; New Forest District Council; Sheffield City Council and Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council. (b) Three local authority groupings have provided a draft plan in the form of a draft Outline Business Case, these are: Basildon Borough Council and Rochford District Council; Bath and North East Somerset; and Tyneside (Newcastle City Council, Gateshead Borough Council, and North Tyneside Council working together).

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Brexit

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

David Rutley: The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 30 January, my department has laid 92 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.

Government Departments: Rural Areas

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which Departments have submitted rural proofing reports to his Department in each of the last three years for which information is available.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many staff of his Department are responsible for overseeing rural proofing reports submitted to his Department.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In the Government’s response to the House of Lords’ report on the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act, the Government reiterated its commitment to rural proofing policies from the earliest stages across all departments. There is a continuous dialogue between Defra and other Government Departments on rural proofing policies. There is no requirement for departments to submit rural proofing reports to Defra and none have been submitted.

Food Supply

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent food shortages in the event of a supply chain disruption in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

David Rutley: The UK has a high degree of food security, built on access to a range of sources including strong domestic production and imports from other countries. This will continue to be the case whether we leave the EU with or without a deal. Food supply is highly resilient with diversity and flexibility throughout the supply chains, and industry responds quickly to disruptions in supply.Extensive work to prepare for a ‘no deal’ scenario has been under way for almost two years. The Government has well established ways of working with the food industry on food supply chain issues and we are using these to support preparations for leaving the EU. This includes working with Defra’s long established Food Chain Emergency Liaison Group (FCELG), which allows Government and industry to work together to plan for and respond to any food supply disruption. This industry group’s membership is drawn from across the agri-food chain sector and includes other relevant government departments, Devolved Administrations and agencies.Defra will continue to work closely with food industry stakeholders to continue to build shared understanding of the impacts of a no deal scenario on food supply and contingency planning measures being taken by industry. Ongoing close collaboration between Government and industry is essential to plan for, respond to, and mitigate any potential disruption.

Home Office

Fire Prevention

Sarah Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to restrict the sale of faulty fire doors.

Mr Nick Hurd: All doors being placed on the UK market must meet the required standards they are advertised as meeting. Wherever the Government is made aware this is not the case we have taken action to withdraw the product from the market.Following the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s (MHCLG) investigation into Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) composite fire doors, MHCLG took swift action to stop the production and distribution of this type of fire door. As a result, no new doors of this type were placed on the market, until evidence that they consistently meet the standard has been demonstrated. MHCLG also acted with industry to ensure that all GRP composite fire doors already on the market were withdrawn from sale.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Dawn Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that women are not disproportionately and negatively impacted in applying for the EU Settlement Scheme and (b) what adjustments will be made for vulnerable women to assist them in applying for settled status.

Caroline Nokes: The Home Office is putting in place measures to ensure that the EU Settlement Scheme is streamlined, user-friendly and accessible to all prospective applicants.We have been working closely with voluntary and community organisations across the UK representing the needs of potentially vulnerable applicants including victims of human trafficking and domestic abuse. The range of support includes telephone advice from our customer support centre; face-to-face assisted digital support and a range of translated content when the scheme opens fully in March.As the Prime Minister announced on 21 January, having listened to concerns raised in constituencies, by Members in the House and stakeholders, applicants to the EU Settlement Scheme will not have to pay a fee when the scheme is fully rolled out by 30 March. Anyone who has applied during the pilot phases of the scheme, or does so, and paid an application fee, will have that fee reimbursed. This will ensure that there is no financial barrier to those who wish to remain in the UK after we leave the EU.

Passports: Fees and Charges

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason his Department charges more for applications for passports accepted through post offices compared with online applications.

Caroline Nokes: The current fees charged by Her Majesty’s Passport Office for administering a passport application, as approved by Parliament in March 2018, introduced a differential depending upon whether an application is made online or by post to reflect that digital applications are cheaper to process.Check & Send is an additional service provided by Post Office Ltd. Fees charged for passport applications submitted at a Post Office include a Check & Send element. This fee is levied by Post Office Ltd for the service that they provide. The fee will differ depending upon whether the customer chooses to apply via a paper form or digitally.

Offences against Children: Criminal Investigation

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to his Department's transparency data, Police funding: special grant applications: 2017 to 2018, updated on 4 June 2018, for what reason his Department's policy is to fund 85 per cent of the investigation costs requested by police forces for large scale child sexual exploitation cases and not the full costs of such investigations.

Mr Nick Hurd: Police and Crime Commissioners should include, within their policing and budget plans, reasonable contingencies for unexpected events within their areas. It is usual practice for PCCs to pay some costs towards most Special Grant claims. This ensures affordability, so we can support a number of PCCs in any financial year. In addition, seeking a contribution towards long term operations helps incentivise forces to ensure that such investigations are run efficiently.Between 2017/18 and 2018/19, the Home Office has provided £22 million of Special Grant towards costs related to Grenfell Tower and £27 million towards major child sexual exploitation investigations.

Criminal Investigation: Costs

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to his Department's transparency data, Police funding: special grant applications: 2017 to 2018, updated on 4 June 2018 and the Grenfell Tower investigation, for what reason his Department's policy is to fund 85 per cent of large scale investigations that are a Government top priority and not the full costs of such investigations.

Mr Nick Hurd: Police and Crime Commissioners should include, within their policing and budget plans, reasonable contingencies for unexpected events within their areas. It is usual practice for PCCs to pay some costs towards most Special Grant claims. This ensures affordability, so we can support a number of PCCs in any financial year. In addition, seeking a contribution towards long term operations helps incentivise forces to ensure that such investigations are run efficiently.Between 2017/18 and 2018/19, the Home Office has provided £22 million of Special Grant towards costs related to Grenfell Tower and £27 million towards major child sexual exploitation investigations.

Asylum: Children

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many local authorities have (a) volunteered to support unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and (b) published the number of children who have been successfully rehomed since the launch of the National Transfer Scheme.

Caroline Nokes: Data on the local authorities participating in the National Transfer Scheme (NTS), including the number of transfers in and out of each authority, can be found in the Asylum transparency dataset, last published in November 2018 at;https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/asylum-transparency-data-november-2018.Since it was launched in July 2016, more than 700 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children have been transferred via the NTS. This is a significant achievement which has seen many local authorities offer placements for children whose best interests are served by transferring to another local authority.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the estimated operational cost of the EU settlement scheme is.

Caroline Nokes: For the Financial Year 18/19, HM Treasury provided funding of £395million to Home Office. £170 million has been reserved for the development and delivery of the EU Settlement Scheme.The Government will ensure the cost of this process is fully funded. What is important is that every EU, Swiss or EEA EFTA citizen and their family members who are here and want to stay, can stay, both in the event of a deal or no deal scenario, and that there is no financial barrier to their doing so.

Asylum: Slavery

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many victims of slavery who are no longer receiving support through the asylum system (a) have applied for a subsistence rate back payment and (b) are yet to apply for a back payment.

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of victims of slavery who are due a subsistence rate back payment are no longer receiving support through the asylum system.

Victoria Atkins: Government is making every effort to pay back everyone affected by the subsistence rate contract changes for asylum-seeking victims of modern slavery made in March 2018.Based on the current data, we have identified 1,208 potential victims of trafficking that have been affected and are entitled to back payments. 989 of those affected are still in both National Referral Mechanism (NRM) and asylum support, 150 are no longer in NRM support but are still in asylum support, and 69 are no longer in either NRM or asylum support.On 24 January 2019, personalised letters were sent out to all those we identified as being affected and eligible for repayments. For those still in support, the letters detailed how much and how they will be paid. For those who have left support, the letters explained how to apply for these pay-ments.If an individual believes they are eligible but does not receive a letter, they can complete an application form on gov.uk. There is no closing date for when people can apply for back payments if they think they are eligible. Further information is available on gov.uk (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-a-subsistence-rates-back-payment-victims-of-modern-slavery).We are not releasing the number of people who have already applied through the application form on gov.uk as this is an ongoing process and we will be working with these individuals to ensure those who are eligible are paid.

Cars: Theft

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to raise public awareness of the vulnerability of keyless cars to theft.

Mr Nick Hurd: I chaired the first meeting of the Vehicle Theft Taskforce on 15 January. As part of its work, the Taskforce will review existing public advice about how owners can secure their vehicles and, where required, produce updated advice that addresses new or emerging threats.

Police: Finance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the policing precepts in increasing police funding in areas with a low base of council tax.

Mr Nick Hurd: For 2019/20 we are proposing the biggest increase in funding since 2010 - total funding of up to £14 billion for 2019-20, an increase of up to £970m compared to 2018/19, including council tax, pensions funding and national investment. With more money for local police forces, counter terrorism and tackling serious and or-ganised crime.We are increasing Government grants to PCCs by £161m, with every PCC’s grant protected in real terms. Additionally, PCCs will be empowered to raise council tax contributions for local policing up to £2-a-month per household. If all PCCs in-crease their precept by £24 a year, this could raise up to around £509m for police forces to spend locally.It is right for PCCs to decide if council tax should increase by £2 a month for a Band D households. Elected PCCs will have to make a case for raising local tax to their electorate and be accountable for delivery of a return on that public invest-ment.We have reviewed the changing and increasingly complex demands on the police and this settlement will enable them to meet the financial pressures they face next year, while continuing to recruit.

Emergency Services Day: Finance

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will provide the same national funding for the Emergency Services Day as the Ministry of Defence does for Armed Forces Day.

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if the Government will fund a position for somebody to work on the Emergency Services Day as the Ministry of Defence does for Armed Forces Day.

Mr Nick Hurd: This Government could not be clearer about the value we place on the role of police officers in cutting crime and keeping our local communities safe. We owe our brave emergency service workers a debt of gratitude for the courage, commitment and dedication they demonstrate in carrying out their duties.The Home Office fully supports the Emergency Services Day campaign and I was pleased to attend the Emergency Services Festival of Thanksgiving on 7 September 2018 in Manchester Cathedral.The Home Office has no current plans to provide a financial donation or staffing to the Emergency Services Day.

Offences against Children: Internet

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of child sexual abuse images online in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his department is taking to prevent the availability and distribution of child sexual abuse material online; and if he will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: Whilst there is no definitive number of child sex abuse images online, industry made over 10m referrals to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in 2017, and the Internet Watch Foundation last year processed 132,636 reports in 2017 (26% increase on 2016).As well as working closely with the IWF, including the sharing of hashes with industry, the UK Government has invested in Project Arachnid – a tool that crawls the web to find indecent imagery and get it removed. It has issued approximately 1 million notices to service providers.In September 2018, the Home Secretary called on industry to raise their response online child sexual exploitation and abuse, including to block child sexual abuse material as soon as companies detect it being uploaded. The Home Office and DCMS are also developing a White Paper which will set out a range of legislative and non-legislative measures to counter online harms and set clear responsibilities for tech companies to keep UK citizens safe online. Protecting children from exploitation and abuse online will be a central component of the White Paper.

Independent Child Trafficking Advocates Service

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2019 to Question 208877 on statistics for the ICTA Scheme and with reference to his Department's Interim Assessment of the first year of the ICTA service, what steps he is taking to provide support to young people that are trafficked and facing criminal justice proceedings but have been unable to access support through the ICTA scheme.

Victoria Atkins: The Government regards slavery, including trafficking, of children as a very serious offence. Where children are found to be victims of modern slavery, their safety and welfare needs must be addressed as the priority. All local agencies (including local authorities, police and border force) have statuto-ry duties to safeguard children as part of their local responsibilities.We are taking a phased approach to national rollout of the ICTA service. One third of all local authorities in England and Wales will have ICTA pro-vision by April 2019.

Asylum: Children

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2019 to Question 208875 on Asylum: Children, what independent support his Department provides to a child when a social care team carries out an age assessment test on them.

Caroline Nokes: When there is doubt about the age of an asylum seeker, they will be referred to a local authority for a Merton compliant age assessment - they are treated as a child whilst the outcome is awaited.In the case of potential victims of trafficking who have been allocated an Independent Child trafficking Advocate (ICTA), they will remain entitled to an ICTA and support under the Modern Slavery Act 2015 while their age remains in doubt.The Home Office and, if applicable, the ICTA support the local authority age assessment by ensuring that all relevant information is made available to the local authority to support the assessment. Whilst the local authority may take into account information obtained by the Home Office to inform their assess-ment, they will come to their own conclusion in accordance with caselaw.In addition, the Home Office also provides independent support to all unac-companied asylum-seeking children in England through the Refugee Council’s Children’s Advice Project. The Project’s role is to assist children through the asylum process and their interactions with central and local government organ-isations.

Independent Child Trafficking Advocates Service

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2019 to Question 208877 on Children: Advocacy, what support his Department provides to children who are no longer eligible for the revised Independent Child Trafficking Advocate scheme.

Victoria Atkins: In local authorities where the Independent Child Trafficking Advocate (ICTA) service has been rolled out, all children that are potential victims of trafficking are eligible for support.The revised ICTA model will continue to provide one-to-one support for children who have no effective parental responsibility for them in the UK. It also introduces, for the first time, an expert ICTA regional practice co-ordinator. This role will focus on children who do have a figure with effective parental responsibility for them in the UK, by working with professionals who are already engaged with and supporting the child.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason his Department will accept identity documents only scanned electronically for the purposes of applying to the EU settlement scheme via Android devices.

Caroline Nokes: EU citizens make a huge contribution to our economy and society, and we want them to stay. The EU Settlement Scheme enables them to do so. The application process is short and user-friendly, and it will be accessible on any smartphone, tablet or computer using internet browsers.The ‘EU Exit: Identity Document Check’ app – which allows applicants to prove their identity remotely, without sending in their passport or national identity card – is currently available only on Android devices. Applicants can, if they wish, use a family member or friend’s Android device to access the app, and complete the rest of the process on their own device.Additionally, we currently have 13 locations where applicants can have their ID document scanned, if they choose to do so. Once the scheme is fully open, by 30 March 2019, there will be over 50 locations across the UK where applicants can have their identity document scanned. Applicants will also be able to post identity documents to the Home Office to be checked and returned quickly.

Police: Staff

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the minimum staffing levels for policing under the auspices of Operation Yellowhammer.

Mr Nick Hurd: I refer the Honourable Member to the answer given to 210622 on 24 January 2019.

Immigration: Computer Software

Kate Hollern: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason the Government's settled status app is only available on Android platforms; and whether he plans to make that app available for other platforms.

Caroline Nokes: EU citizens make a huge contribution to our economy and society, and we want them to stay. The EU Settlement Scheme enables them to do so. The application process is short and user-friendly, and it will be accessible on any smartphone, tablet or computer using internet browsers.The ‘EU Exit: Identity Document Check’ app – which allows applicants to prove their identity remotely, without sending in their passport or national identity card – is currently available only on Android devices. Applicants can, if they wish, use a family member or friend’s Android device to access the app, and complete the rest of the process on their own device.Additionally, we currently have 13 locations where applicants can have their ID document scanned, if they choose to do so. Once the scheme is fully open, by 30 March 2019, there will be over 50 locations across the UK where applicants can have their identity document scanned. Applicants will also be able to post identity documents to the Home Office to be checked and re-turned quickly.The Home Office and Apple continue to engage to see if we can provide the equivalent service for those with Apple devices.

Home Office: Brexit

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress he has made in laying Statutory Instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Victoria Atkins: As of 30 January, my department has laid 5 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.The Home Office has also published 3 statements of changes to the Immigration Rules regarding the EU Settlement Scheme that can be found at www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/updates

Department for Exiting the European Union

Department for Exiting the European Union: Sikhs

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many Sikhs are employed in his Department; and whether they are recorded as (a) an ethnic or (b) a religious group.

Chris Heaton-Harris: Based on the self-declaration rates held on our system at the time of this question, none have declared as Sikh. This figure is based entirely on people identifying themselves as a Sikh on the Department’s HR system. The option to declare as Sikh is categorised under Religion.The Department for Exiting the European Union is committed to the creation of a diverse and inclusive working environment to ensure staff do not face any barriers to success, and all staff feel supported at work.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Staff

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) is responsible for overseeing negotiations to leave the EU and establishing the future relationship between the UK and EU. There are currently no DExEU staff who work in the Government Major Projects Portfolio, as was the case in June 2016, as the projects which comprise the suite of EU Exit projects are not managed under the Government Major Projects Portfolio.

Civil Servants

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many of the 10,000 civil servants recently hired from the Treasury’s allocation of £2 billion were hired into (a) HMRC, (b) the Treasury and (c) the Departments for (i) International Trade and (ii) Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Department for Exiting the EU does not hold this information as it would be held by individual departments.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Brexit

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Heaton-Harris: The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 30 January, the Government has laid over 60 per cent of the exit statutory instruments required, and my department has laid 7 of these. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.

Treasury

Cash Dispensing: Rural Areas

Catherine West: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the proposed changes to the ATM network on access to free ATMs in rural communities.

John Glen: The Government has not conducted its own assessment of the proposed changes to the ATM network on access to free ATMs in rural communities. The Government established the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) in 2015 with a statutory objective to ensure that the UK’s payment systems work in the interests of their users. As part of this, the PSR is closely monitoring developments within ATM provision. Both LINK, the scheme that runs the UK’s ATM network, and the PSR commissioned work to understand the impact on the provision of free-to-use ATMs that a reduction in interchange fees may have. LINK has put in place specific arrangements to protect free-to-use ATMs more than 1 kilometre away from the next nearest free-to-use ATM. LINK has also recently announced new financial support for ATMs in remote and deprived areas.

Inflation and Social Security Benefits

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons (a) his Department uses different indices to measure inflation and (b) benefit increases are pegged to the lower index.

John Glen: The government currently makes use of both the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) and the Retail Prices Index (RPI). We recognise that there are issues in the way that RPI is measured and, as set out at Autumn Budget 2018, the government’s objective is to reduce the use of RPI when and where practicable.

Portsmouth Port

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing an inland checking facility to ensure the smooth functioning of Portsmouth International Port in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

Mel Stride: For Day 1 of a No Deal scenario, HMRC’s plans allow for the border to operate without significant new infrastructure. Where existing capacity cannot accommodate intra EU trade and it is not practicable to have additional infrastructure in place for Day 1, we are exploring alternative temporary solutions until the additional infrastructure can be in place. To manage the most significant compliance risks, HMRC will utilise its existing inland pre-clearance sites for the highest risk traders from the EU and the rest of the world.

Sheltered Housing Wardens: VAT

Dr David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason HMRC has introduced new guidance on the payment of VAT on costs for the provision of site-based staff at (a) sheltered units of accommodation and (b) other such developments.

Mel Stride: There has been no change in government policy in this area. Service charges payable by residents to a landlord are exempt from VAT and continue to be so. Equally, the supply of any on-site staff to an individual, landlord or company has, since the inception of VAT, been a taxable supply. HMRC became aware that a number of property management and similar companies had not been correctly accounting for VAT on their services, thereby giving them an unfair advantage over their competitors. To address this, on 7 September 2018, HMRC issued a Revenue and Customs Brief 06/2018 and associated documents to publicise the correct VAT treatment in respect of goods and services, including staff, supplied by a property management company or similar to a landlord or a “Right to Manage” (RTM) company. These documents are available via the gov.uk website.

Cash Dispensing: Urban Areas

Ruth Smeeth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of towns without free access to the ATM network.

Ruth Smeeth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on the local economy of restricted access to free to use ATMs.

John Glen: Information on ATM numbers by Parliamentary Constituency is publicly available on the LINK website. LINK, the scheme that runs the UK’s ATM network, has committed to maintain the broad geographical coverage of the ATM network in the UK. The Government-established Payment Systems Regulator, which regulates LINK, is closely monitoring developments within ATM provision and has used its powers to hold LINK to account over its commitments. LINK has put in place specific arrangements to protect free-to-use ATMs more than 1 kilometre away from the next nearest free-to-use ATM. Furthermore, LINK recently announced new additional premiums to safeguard the presence of free-to-use ATMs in remote and deprived areas.

Corporation Tax: Tax Rates and Bands

Kate Hollern: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the public finances of reducing the rate of corporation tax from 19 per cent to 17 per cent.

Mel Stride: The estimated Exchequer impact of future corporation tax rate reductions are certified by the Office for Budget Responsibility. The most recent estimates can be found in Table 2.2 of Spring Budget 2017 and Table 2.2 of Budget 2018.The government is committed to delivering a competitive tax regime. Low corporation tax rates support the economy by increasing the profits retained by companies – enabling them to reinvest in their business, create jobs, and increase wages.Despite the rate cuts since 2010, onshore corporation tax revenues have increased by over 50 per cent – from £36.2 billion in 2010-11 to £55.7 billion in 2017-18.

Tax Allowances

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many tax reliefs HMRC recorded in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014, (f) 2015, (g) 2016, (h) 2017 and (i) 2018.

Mel Stride: The number of tax reliefs published by HMRC annually are shown in the following table: PublishedTotalDecember 2010397December 2011394December 2012400December 2013398December 2014404December 2015402December 2016421January 2018424 The next publication is due at 0930 on 31st January 2019.

Treasury: Brexit

Michael Tomlinson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress he has made in laying Statutory Instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

John Glen: The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 30 January, HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs has laid 70 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.

Tax Avoidance

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he will bring forward legislative proposals to make it an offence for an organisation offering audit services to sell tax avoidance schemes; and if he will make a statement.

Mel Stride: The Government is committed to tackling tax avoidance and ensuring that companies and individuals pay their fair share of tax. HMRC has a suite of powers to tackle and challenge those who promote or otherwise enable tax avoidance. Those who design, sell, manage or otherwise promote tax avoidance schemes face a range of sanctions including penalties if they fail to disclose their schemes to HMRC where required to do so under the Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes (DOTAS) regime. They can also face action under the Promoters of Tax Avoidance Schemes (POTAS) regime which includes imposing conditions on them to ensure they change their behaviour. And, if any person (not just a scheme promoter) enables another person to use abusive tax arrangements which HMRC later defeats, they could be subject to the an ‘Enabler’s’ penalty.Under the ‘Enablers’ penalty, introduced in Finance (No. 2) Act 2017, anyone who knowingly enables another person to use an abusive tax arrangement that is later defeated by HMRC will face a penalty of 100% of the fees they have earned from that activity. This new legislation is at the forefront of HMRC work to disrupt the avoidance market, identifying both the schemes and the individuals behind them and acting quickly to challenge them. It strengthens HMRC’s tools for tackling both promoters and others who profit from enabling others to try to avoid tax.The effectiveness of HMRC’s powers is kept under review.

Corporation Tax

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to require the Financial Reporting Council to develop accounting standards requiring UK companies to disclose how much corporation tax or its equivalent they pay in each country of their operation; and if he will make a statement.

Mel Stride: There are currently no plans to require UK accounting standards to be developed for this purpose. However, the government continues to support the development of a public Country-by-Country Reporting model that works on a multilateral basis. This would require large multinational companies to publish a country-by-country breakdown of their profits, tax and assets.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Culture: St Helens

Conor McGinn: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what funding his Department has allocated to arts and culture projects in St Helens Council in each of the last five years.

Michael Ellis: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 24 January 2019.The correct answer should have been:

As outlined in the table, since April 2013, Arts Council England has invested over £1 million in arts and culture projects in St Helens North including, National Lottery Grants for the Arts, Project Grants and through Music Education Hubs.   2013/142014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19 to dateNational Portfolio Organisations£ -  £ -  £ -  £ -  £ -  £ 460,000Music Education Hubs£ 196,771 £ 198,850 £ 258,548 £ 255,889 £ 252,312 £ 252,419GFTA/PG£ 177,138 £ 185,254 £ 75,580 £ 87,526 £ 44,800 £ 14,961Strategic Funding/Other£ 628,296 £ -  £ 871,704 £ 1,651,550 £ -  £ - Total£ 1,002,205 £ 384,104 £ 1,205,832 £ 1,994,965 £ 297,112 £ 727,380 St Helens North2013/20142014/20152015/20162016/20172017/2018Grants For The Arts/Project Grants£ 27,170£ 14,682£ 40,324£10,000£29,800Music Education Hubs£ 196,771£ 198,850£ 258,548£255,889£252,312Total£ 223,941£ 213,532£ 298,872£265,889£282,112

Michael Ellis: As outlined in the table, since April 2013, Arts Council England has invested over £1 million in arts and culture projects in St Helens North including, National Lottery Grants for the Arts, Project Grants and through Music Education Hubs.   2013/142014/152015/162016/172017/182018/19 to dateNational Portfolio Organisations£ -  £ -  £ -  £ -  £ -  £ 460,000Music Education Hubs£ 196,771 £ 198,850 £ 258,548 £ 255,889 £ 252,312 £ 252,419GFTA/PG£ 177,138 £ 185,254 £ 75,580 £ 87,526 £ 44,800 £ 14,961Strategic Funding/Other£ 628,296 £ -  £ 871,704 £ 1,651,550 £ -  £ - Total£ 1,002,205 £ 384,104 £ 1,205,832 £ 1,994,965 £ 297,112 £ 727,380 St Helens North2013/20142014/20152015/20162016/20172017/2018Grants For The Arts/Project Grants£ 27,170£ 14,682£ 40,324£10,000£29,800Music Education Hubs£ 196,771£ 198,850£ 258,548£255,889£252,312Total£ 223,941£ 213,532£ 298,872£265,889£282,112

Commonwealth Games 2022

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has had discussions with the Prime Minister on the appointment of Non-Executive Directors to the Birmingham Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Mims Davies: The Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is the appointing minister for the Non-Executive Director appointments to the board of the Birmingham Organising Committee for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. All candidates applied by open competition, went through the same selection and interview process, and were made on merit in line with the process for public appointments. The 13 board members will work with the Chair to ensure successful delivery of the Commonwealth Games.

Snooker

Conor Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the economic benefits that major snooker tournaments deliver to host cities and towns.

Mims Davies: Neither DCMS or UK Sport are involved in the bidding for or hosting a snooker events, and as such we do not track or assess the economic or other benefits which such events may bring to the towns and cities hosting them. According to latest Sport England participation statistics, 23,600 adults took part in snooker at least twice in the last 28 days (May 17-18), which is 0.1% of the population. Between 1 April 2009 and 31 December 2018, Sport England invested into 37 multi-sport projects, benefitting billiards and snooker to a total award value of £7,411,759 (£224,000 Exchequer and £7,187,759 Lottery). There are also 9 multi-sport projects involving snooker currently at various stages of assessment. These include 8 Community Asset Fund and 1 Small Grants applications.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Civil Servants

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the corrected Answer of 22 January 2019 to Question 206251, how many civil servants in his Department were working part or full-time on projects in the Government Major Projects Portfolio in (a) June 2016 and (b) December 2018.

Margot James: The GMPP is a continually evolving portfolio of the government’s most complex and high risk projects. Direct comparisons of the GMPP across years should therefore be treated with caution. Projects join and leave the GMPP throughout the year and it is therefore likely that a simple comparison across two time points will refer to different sets of projects. At the end of June 2016 (i.e. the end of the Quarter 1 reporting period for 2016-17), 58.8 officials in DCMS were working on GMPP projects. GMPP data for December 2018 (Q3 2018/19) has not yet been cleared and finalised. At the end of September 2018 (i.e. the latest submitted data, at end of the Quarter 2 reporting period for 2018-19), 127.5 officials in DCMS were working on GMPP projects. This data refers to public sector employees, defined as those who are directly in the employment of the Civil or Crown Service, local government or Arms’ Length Body at the relevant snapshot date, including seconded members of staff who join the team as Civil, Crown or Public servants.

Canoeing

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent steps he has taken to support increased access for canoeists to rivers and waterways in England.

Mims Davies: The Government’s sport strategy, Sporting Future, encourages and promotes outdoor recreation. Use of our waterways by all can be a creative and fun way to engage with the natural world and to stay healthy. Sport England is actively engaged with British Canoeing and the Canal and River Trust to get more people from all backgrounds active. In addition Sport England is providing £6.85m to British Canoeing for the period between 2017 to 2021. The ‘public rights of navigation’ issue around access to waterways is dealt with by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and they are currently working with British Canoeing to consider solutions to access disputes.

Lotteries

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to support lotteries.

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of raising the prize limit for society lotteries.

Mims Davies: We are committed to ensuring both society lotteries and the National Lottery are able to thrive and am currently considering responses to the recent consultation on reforms to society lotteries. The consultation seeks to achieve a balance between enabling growth in the society lottery sector, while also protecting the unique position of the UK-wide National Lottery, which has raised over £39 billion for good causes since it started in 1994. In terms of supporting the National Lottery, work has begun with the Gambling Commission on preparations for the next licence competition, and this year is an important one for the National Lottery in marking its 25th Anniversary. I am looking forward to supporting those celebrations.

Football: Travel

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the adequacy of travel arrangements for football fans.

Mims Davies: The Secretary of State has regular discussions with Cabinet colleagues on a range of matters, and we are aware of the issues around travel to and from football matches. The Department for Transport is working collaboratively with their partners in the rail industry, football bodies and other stakeholders to improve travel for supporters.

Pinterest

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether (a) he (b) Ministers of his Department and (c) officials of his Department have met representatives of Pinterest over the last two years.

Jeremy Wright: Officials in my department have met with Pinterest previously to discuss the Internet Safety Strategy. We are extremely concerned by recent reports that algorithms are targeting young people with self-harm and suicide images and we intend to lay out our approach to tackling a range of online harms in a forthcoming White Paper. My Right Honourable friend, the Health and Social Care Secretary, has raised the government's concerns again this week in this area with a number of companies, including Pinterest, and I have instructed my officials to arrange a further meeting with Pinterest as soon as possible.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Brexit

Lee Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: The Government has made good progress in laying the up to 600 statutory instruments required by exit day to ensure a functioning statute book. As of 30 January, my department has laid 11 exit related statutory instruments. All exit related statutory instruments are published on legislation.gov.uk, and include ‘EU Exit’ in their title.

Social Enterprises

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 59 of the Government's Civil Society Strategy published in August 2018, what measures have been considered by his Department to unlock and boost social impact investment.

Mims Davies: We are fully committed to the Civil Society Strategy: it is the beginning of an ambitious, evolving work programme to help build a strong society. As part of this, government is continuing its work to consider additional measures to boost social impact investment. For example, an additional £125m of dormant assets has been, and will be, allocated to Big Society Capital in the period 2017-2020, and an additional £10m has been allocated to Access - The Foundation for Social Investment. This is in addition to the £60m government grant to Access, of which £3.9 million will be provided in 2019 and £5.0m in 2020. A £3.2million social investment fund has recently been launched by DCMS: the Northern Cultural Regeneration Social Investment Fund will start extending loans to cultural and creative organisations in the North of England from April 2019. In 2018, the Prime Minister asked Elizabeth Corley to lead the Taskforce on Impact Investment and DCMS ministers and officials are supporting the work of this taskforce. DCMS ministers and officials also continue to work with departments to identify other opportunities for social investment to support the government’s priorities. The Social Housing Green Paper, published in August 2018, described social investment as an opportunity to increase the quality and quantity of social housing, and the government’s Rough Sleeping Strategy commits to the use of Social Impact Bonds to meet the government’s targets to reduce rough sleeping.

Social Media: Information Warfare

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to tackle the spread of disinformation on social media.

Margot James: Disinformation will be one of the harms addressed in the forthcoming Online Harms White Paper, which will set out legislative and non-legislative measures to ensure platforms take adequate steps to protect their users. We are considering all options available to us. As the White Paper is finalised, we continue to have regular and robust dialogue with these companies on their progress to tackle this critical issue. We are also working across academia, civil society and internationally to expose and build resilience to disinformation. This includes a media literacy roundtable hosted by Ministers today.

House of Commons Commission

House of Commons Annunciator System

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what plans he has to improve information displayed on the House of Commons Annunciator system such as expected debate scheduling times.

Tom Brake: Holding answer received on 16 January 2019



There are currently no plans to add to the existing information currently displayed on the House of Commons Annunciator system whose capacity to carry more information is limited.

Attorney General

Bhanu Choudhrie and Sudhir Choudhrie

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Attorney General, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that SFO investigations into (a) Sudhir Choudhrie and (b)  Bhanu Choudhrie are (i) compliant with legislation and (ii) receive all relevant information.

Robert Buckland: As highlighted in the answer given on 24 January to PQ 210434 the SFO can neither confirm nor deny if these individuals are subject to any investigation. The SFO carries out all of its work in compliance with legislation.The SFO also works collaboratively with law enforcement and regulatory partners to combat serious or complex fraud, bribery and corruption and share information, both in the UK and abroad. This includes membership of the newly launched multi-agency National Economic Crime Centre which was set up by the Government following the 2017 Economic Crime Review to ensure a more effective law enforcement response to economic crime.

Attorney General: Brexit

Lee Rowley: To ask the Attorney General, what progress he has made in laying statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness; and if he will make a statement.

Robert Buckland: The Law Officers Departments do not require secondary legislation in order to prepare for EU Exit. The Government Legal Department, Crown Prosecution Service and Serious Fraud Office continue to support, as necessary, other Government departments in preparing statutory instruments related to EU exit preparedness.